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David M. Wittman
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THE ELEMENTS OF RELATIVITY
The Elements of Relativity
David M. Wittman
University of California, Davis
1
3
Great Clarendon Street, Oxford, OX2 6DP,
United Kingdom
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© David M. Wittman 2018
The moral rights of the author have been asserted
Excerpt on page 28 from Slaughterhouse-five: or the Children’s Crusade,
A Duty Dance with Death (25th Anniversary) by Kurt Vonnegut,
copyright © 1968, 1969 and copyright renewed © 1996, 1997 by
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First Edition published in 2018
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To Vera, whose love and support has helped me grow so much.
Preface
Relativity is one of the triumphs of twentieth-century physics, but physics cur-

ricula tend to reserve it for advanced students. The message to students is; if
you survive everything else, you may move on to relativity. This is a missed
opportunity to engage a much larger audience of nonspecialists. Given that
many general education students are genuinely curious about relativity, and that
special relativity can be understood with remarkably little math, it is a shame
that we do not teach it more widely. Furthermore, in relativity a rich set of
interesting consequences can be deduced from just a few axioms and a lot of
disciplined thinking. This makes relativity an excellent topic for a college course
for nonspecialists! I urge my fellow faculty to offer this type of course more often—
it is rewarding for students and faculty alike.
My take on such a course is that while it should explicitly not require any
previous physics knowledge, it should offer training in disciplined thinking. (This
could potentially make it a first course for physics majors as well.) Instructors
should provide thinking tools that are accessible to beginners, while making clear
that students must be willing to put in the hard work to practice those thinking
tools; this is a college physics course, not a broad survey. While making the
subject approachable and avoiding unnecessary complications, we should pursue
a thorough understanding, avoid shrinking from difficult concepts, and require
students to apply what they learn to new situations. Such a course should follow
Einstein’s exhortation to “Make things as simple as possible, but not simpler.”
I wrote this textbook to make a course like that possible. A key question in
designing that course is: should it be limited to special relativity (where a complete
understanding is possible) or should it try to address general relativity? Knowing
that students are intensely curious about black holes and the Big Bang, I have done
my best to help them develop the relevant thinking tools there too, while relaxing
the goal of complete understanding. Instructors can therefore use this book in
various ways. If your highest priority is systematic understanding, you may wish
to proceed sequentially and slowly, leaving the last few chapters for interested
students to read on their own. If black holes are a must-do, consider skipping some
of the details of earlier chapters. (I have marked some sections with an asterisk to
indicate candidates for skipping; I also skip some mathematical details in sections
that cannot be skipped conceptually.) Similarly, while my approach is to require
a minimum of math in homework problems, there are many opportunities to use
more math if that suits your audience. If you would rather emphasize scientific
literacy and media consumption skills, there are links in those areas as well.
viii Preface
Having taught the course several times, I gradually learned how to present the
ideas to students effectively:
• Spacetime diagrams are introduced very early, in the context of Galilean

relativity. Students avoid cognitive overload by becoming familiar with
worldlines, events, and so on before they wrestle with any of the ideas of
special relativity.
• The emphasis more generally is on graphical understanding. Although
equations are necessary for rigor, beginners do better when they can see the
essentials of the situation rather than try to extract them from an equation.
• Accelerated frames are also introduced prior to special relativity, so students
are not blindsided by the twin paradox.
• General relativistic thinking tools are presented as a natural evolution of
special relativistic thinking tools, so general relativity seems less like a
separate and forbidding domain of knowledge.
• Thinking tools are presented quite explicitly as tools. This makes relativity
more accessible, but equally importantly it cultivates metacognitive skills.
Students who may think “I’m not good at this” are explicitly given the tools
to practice and become good at it.
• Thinking tools that go beyond relativity, such as symmetry, are also empha-
sized. My goal is to make these thinking tools so familiar that students may
begin to apply them outside the context of the course.
• Research shows that students benefit from revisiting topics and making
connections between different topics. I therefore allow understanding to
unfold in layers rather than attempt to force complete understanding of
a topic on a single chapter. The Einstein velocity addition law is a case
in point: Chapter 5 merely provides a mental picture to make such a law
seem intuitively possible, Chapter 6 first shows how it works graphically,
Chapter 8 provides more graphical velocity addition practice, and Chap-
ter 9 explains the law mathematically.
In summary, I believe this book enables students with no physics background

to understand relativity rather than just read a description of it, and enables more
faculty to offer general education courses on relativity. I hope you will find this
book stimulating and rewarding.
David Wittman
Davis, California
January 20, 2018
Acknowledgments
This book grew from a course I taught, so I start by thanking people related to
that course. I never would have tried teaching such a course without Will Dawson
as a teaching assistant; I knew I could trust him to do a great job developing
discussion activities, guiding students, challenging my facile explanations, and
helping me shape the course. Jeff Hutchinson performed just as ably in later
iterations of the course; he also corrected mistakes and suggested clarifications
in an initial draft of this book. I also thank the students who suffered through
initial drafts of this book. The honors students who took the course in fall 2013
deserve special mention for constructive exchanges that stimulated me to rewrite
the draft almost from scratch. Four students from that course—Shuhao David
Ke, Olga Ivanova, Dean Watson, and Adam Zufall—read a completely new draft
in fall 2014 and provided useful feedback. Adam Zufall in particular provided
specific and insightful feedback and debated some changes with me.
Outside the context of the course, Chuck Watson deserves special mention for
reading every single line of two separate drafts and providing extremely thorough
and thoughtful feedback. Chuck provided a greatly needed wake-up call that
many sections of an earlier draft were inadequate for beginners, and if the book
now makes sense to them they should thank Chuck for that. Chuck also caught
numerous typos and awkward or ambiguous passages, often suggesting better
phrasing than I came up with myself. My wife, Vera Margoniner, also read some
versions of each chapter and help me clarify the presentation of many points.
I also thank Steve Carlip for providing expert advice on a variety of points in the
later chapters. It is a cliché to write that any remaining errors are my own, but
now I know that the cliché is absolutely true. Each of these people kept me on
track at some point, but I may have veered off track through numerous revisions
since then.
I thank Adam Taylor for the handful of stylish drawings you see in this book;
the less stylish ones are my own. I also thank Vivian Ellinger for making it possible
to work with Adam.
I owe the biggest thanks to my family—Becca, Linus, and most of all Vera—
for supporting me through such a large time commitment. My parents, Linus
and Bonnie Wittman, not only raised me well but also gave freely of their time
and energy in the past few years so I would have more time to focus on the book.
Thanks, geysers!
Contents
Guide to the Reader xvii
1 A First Look at Relativity 1

1.1 Coordinates and displacement 1
1.2 Velocity 3
1.3 Galilean velocity addition law 4
1.4 Velocity is an arrow 8
1.5 Symmetry and the principle of relativity 9
Chapter summary 10
Study advice 10
Check your understanding: explanations 11
Exercises 11
Problems 12
2 Acceleration and Force 13

2.1 Acceleration 13
2.2 Acceleration, force, and mass 14
2.3 Accelerating frames and fictitious forces 16
2.4 Inertial frames 17
Chapter summary 18
Exercises 19
Problems 20
3 Galilean Relativity 22
3.1 Motion in two (or more) dimensions 22
3.2 Projectile motion 23
3.3 Principle of relativity 24
Chapter summary 25
Exercises 26
Problems 26
4 Reasoning with Frames and Spacetime Diagrams 29

4.1 The river and the hat 29
4.2 Frame-dependent versus frame-independent questions 32
xii Contents
4.3 Coordinate grids of moving frames 33

4.4 Transverse distances are always frame-independent 35
4.5 Billiards 36
4.6 Accelerated frames 38
4.7 Assumptions 40
Chapter summary 40
Exercises 41
Problems 42
5 The Speed of Light 43

5.1 Observation: the speed of light is frame-independent 43
5.2 Implication: nothing can travel faster than c 45
5.3 Implications for the velocity addition law 47
5.4 Graphical interpretation 49
5.5 Incomplete versus wrong models 51
Chapter summary 53
Further reading 53
Exercises 54
Problems 54
6 Time Skew 56
6.1 Simultaneity is frame-dependent 56
6.2 Practice with skewed grids 60
6.3 Time skew 65
6.4 Causality 67
Chapter summary 69
Further reading 70
Exercises 71
Problems 72
7 Time Dilation and Length Contraction 74

7.1 Time dilation 74
7.2 Light clocks and γ 75
7.3 Length contraction and reciprocity 80
7.4 Experimental proof 84
7.5 Time dilation with spacetime diagrams 86
7.6 Light clock along the direction of motion 88
Chapter summary 90
Further reading 90
Exercises 91
Problems 92
Contents xiii
8 Special Relativity: Putting it All Together 94

8.1 Solving problems with spacetime diagrams 94
8.2 Measuring the length of a moving object 97
8.3 Train in tunnel paradox 98
8.4 Velocity addition 100
8.5 Clocks 101
Further reading 102
Problems 102
9 Doppler Effect and Velocity Addition Law 105

9.1 Doppler effect basics 105
9.2 Doppler effect and special relativity 107
9.3 Doppler law and applications 109
9.4 Einstein velocity addition law 111
Chapter summary 113
Further reading 114
Exercises 115
Problems 115
10 The Twin Paradox 117

10.1 Alice and Bob communicate 117
10.2 What Alice observes 119
10.3 Changing frames 121
10.4 Principle of longest proper time 123
10.5 Faster-than-light speeds and time travel 126
Chapter summary 129
Exercises 130
Problems 130
11 Spacetime Geometry 132

11.1 Geometry of space 132
11.2 The spacetime metric 134
11.3 Understanding the metric 138
11.4 Spacetime geometry is hyperbolic 141
Chapter summary 143
Further reading 144
Exercises 145
Problems 145
xiv Contents
12 Energy and Momentum 147

12.1 Energy and momentum (Galilean) 147
12.2 Energy and momentum (including speeds near c) 149
12.3 Energy-momentum relation 151
12.4 E = mc2 153
12.5 Energy budget for particles with mass 158
12.6 Massless particles 159
Chapter summary 162
Further reading 162
Exercises 164
Problems 164
13 The Equivalence Principle 166

13.1 Gravity is special 166
13.2 Equivalence principle 167
13.3 Slow time 169
13.4 Gravitational redshift 171
13.5 Gravity disappears in freely falling frames 174
Chapter summary 177
Further reading 177
Exercises 177
Problems 178
14 Gravity Reframed 180

14.1 Maximizing proper time 180
14.2 Metrics and the geodesic equation 184
14.3 Graphical model 187
Chapter summary 188
Further reading 188
Exercises 189
Problems 189
15 Potential 191
15.1 Definition of potential 191
15.2 The potential traces slow time 193
15.3 Visualizing the potential 195
Chapter summary 197
Exercises 198
Problems 199
Contents xv
16 Newtonian Gravity 201

16.1 Invisible string 201
16.2 Fields and test masses 204
16.3 Newton’s law of universal gravitation 206
16.4 Gravity in and around spheres 208
16.5 Gravitational potential revisited 210
16.6 Surface gravity and compact objects 213
16.7 Tides 215
Chapter summary 217
Further reading 217
Exercises 218
Problems 219
17 Orbits 222
17.1 Circular orbits 222
17.2 Elliptical orbits 225
17.3 Symmetry of orbits 227
17.4 Slingshot maneuver 229
17.5 Dark matter versus modified gravity 230
17.6 Masses of stars 231
17.7 Extrasolar planets 232
Chapter summary 233
Further reading 234
Exercises 235
Problems 236
18 General Relativity and the Schwarzschild Metric 237

18.1 From Newton to Einstein 237
18.2 Elements of general relativity 241
18.3 The Einstein equation 245
18.4 The Schwarzschild solution 248
18.5 Curved space 250
18.6 Observable consequences of the Schwarzschild metric 254
18.7 Time versus space parts of the metric 257
Chapter summary 258
Further reading 259
Exercises 260
Problems 261
xvi Contents
19 Beyond the Schwarzschild Metric 263

19.1 General relativity in context 263
19.2 Gravitomagnetism 264
19.3 Gravitational waves 267
19.4 Gravitational lensing 270
19.5 Cosmology 273
Chapter summary 279
Further reading 279
Exercises 281
Problems 281
20 Black Holes 283

20.1 What is a black hole? 283
20.2 A closer look at the horizon 286
20.3 Black holes in nature 288
20.4 Facts and myths about black holes 292
20.5 Spinning black holes 295
Chapter summary 297
Further reading 297
Exercises 298
Problems 299
Index 302
Guide to the Reader
Teachers rarely give their students explicit instruction in how to read. The
assumption must be that they learned how to read as children, so we have nothing
to add at this point. I believe this consigns many students to ineffective study
habits; many have never thought explicitly about reading strategies. The fact is
that you should not read a book of ideas straight through like a novel. You should
be engaging in a conversation with the book, identifying the key points and arguing
back until you come to terms with them.
True learning does not happen quickly and easily, so budget plenty of time for Confusion alert
each chapter and perhaps skim its sections first to help you budget wisely. Then
read one section at a time and give yourself time to really think about the concepts. These are posted to sharpen the dis-
Consider taking a break between sections—reading too much in one sitting will tinction between two similar concepts
or words, or between the physics and
reduce your comprehension of the later parts. everyday meanings of a word, or in
When you finish reading a section, thoroughly consider the Check Your other situations where miscommu-
Understanding question before moving on. Use your performance on that question nications are common. These alerts
inoculate you against the most com-
to rate your level of understanding, and keep track of which sections you will need mon sources of miscommunication in
to reread. When rereading a section, focus on the paragraphs and figures that discussing relativity so keep them in
seem most important or most relevant to your difficulties rather than rereading mind not only as you read, but also as
you discuss relativity with others.
uniformly from start to finish. If a point is still unclear after rereading, make
a note to discuss the question with another student or with the instructor to
clarify the concept. Then, make sure to reread the relevant point again after that
discussion to check your new understanding. This is crucial because listening to Think about it
a clear explanation does not necessarily make it stick in your mind, even if you
feel strongly at the time that it will (a phenomenon psychologists call the fluency If you find the main text on a page
illusion). relatively clear and easy to digest, you
should be simultaneously engaged in
At the end of a chapter, check the list of key concepts in the chapter summary relating it to earlier points and to
and ask yourself if you understand them completely. The chapter summary will personal experience; these notes help
come in handy when reviewing or rereading, but do not fool yourself into thinking prompt this engagement, and help
answer questions such as “But how is
that reading—or even memorizing—the summary alone is a substitute for deeply that consistent with...?” In your first
engaged reading. A great way to process the ideas is to close the book and attempt time through any given section, you
to write down the major points yourself. Writing boosts your learning by engaging may have cognitive overload just pro-
cessing the main text. In that case, it
a different set of brain circuits. may be better not to dwell on a Think
Chapter end matter includes both exercises and problems, and the distinction About It note, but make sure to reread
is extremely important. Exercises are straightforward procedures that help you the section later when you are able to
process it on this deeper level.
rehearse concepts and skills. Problems do not come with a well-defined procedure;
you really have to think about the solution. Take rock climbing as an analogy. If
you want to be a good rock climber, you need strong arms so you repeatedly do
chinups, which are straightforward and trivial to describe, but still take practice.
xviii Guide to the Reader
But you also need to practice climbing on real obstacles; this is where the skill of
rock climbing is. Exercises are necessary, but problems develop higher-level skills.
Problems force you to apply your thinking tools to new and unfamiliar situations.
This can be the most difficult part of learning—but also the most rewarding,
because it builds true understanding.
*Optional sections.One of the beauties of science is that everything is connected,
but this is also one of the difficulties of teaching science: where to stop? Sections
marked with asterisks (and boxes, which are smaller) are not absolutely necessary
to understanding the main thread of the course. Students who feel comfortable
with the main thread will benefit from making these additional connections, but
students who need to focus fully on the main thread may skip these boxes at first.
Of course, instructors will vary in their opinion of what is optional, depending
on the length of the term and the level of student preparation; students are
advised to rely on their instructor for detailed guidance. Readers who are teaching
themselves should pay close attention to the asterisks; if an optional topic seems
more confusing than enriching, refocus on the main thread and return to the
optional topic later as desired.
A First Look at Relativity
1
Relativity is a set of remarkable insights into the way space and time work. The
basic notion of relativity, first articulated by Galileo Galilei (1564–1642), explains 1.1 Coordinates and displacement 1
why we do not feel the Earth moving as it orbits the Sun and was successful 1.2 Velocity 3
for hundreds of years. By the turn of the twentieth century, however, it became
apparent that Galilean relativity did not provide a complete description of nature,
1.4 Velocity is an arrow 8
particularly at high speeds such as the speed of light. In 1905, Albert Einstein
1.5 Symmetry and the principle
(1879–1955) discovered unexpected relationships between space and time that of relativity 9
allow relativity to work even at high speeds; this is now called special relativity.
Chapter summary 10
Soon after, Hermann Minkowski (1864–1909) found a way to express these
Study advice 10
relationships in terms of the geometry of a single unified entity called spacetime.
Check your understanding:
Einstein initially resisted this point of view but eventually adopted it and pushed it explanations 11
much further in his 1915 general theory of relativity, which explained gravity itself
Exercises 11
in these geometric terms. The insights of general relativity are abstract and help us
Problems 12
understand extreme phenomena such as black holes, but they also have everyday
consequences: general relativity is used by smartphones everywhere to locate
themselves in Earth’s gravitational field with the help of the Global Positioning
System.
We begin with Galilean relativity.
1.1 Coordinates and displacement

Understanding relativity requires, first of all, clear language for describing motion.
Imagine an unmoving camera capturing a series of images of a bicyclist going by
from west to east:
Assuming we care only about the overall position of the bike at any given time
we can boil this information down to a motion diagram, which represents the
position of the bike at any given time as a dot:
The Elements of Relativity. David M. Wittman, Oxford University Press (2018).

© David M. Wittman 2018. DOI 10.1093/oso/9780199658633.001.0001
2 1 A First Look at Relativity
To help you recognize the order in which the positions were recorded, the older
dots are progressively more faded. This motion diagram eliminates details such as
how the pedals were turned or when the rider drank from the water bottle, but it
captures the essence of the motion. By simplifying the bike down to a featureless
dot we have adopted a particle model of the bike. The word particle will appear
often in this book, indicating that we do not care about the details of the object
performing a particular motion. For variety, we may also refer to named objects
or characters in motion, but the particle model is still implicit unless otherwise
noted.
By stripping out other details, the motion diagram helps us focus on a particle’s
position. The change in a particle’s position from one time to another is called
Confusion alert its displacement during that time. Displacement is distinct from position; if an
object never moves during an experiment, it has no displacement, but it definitely
Position in this book refers to location has a position! Although they are distinct concepts, we measure displacement and
alone. We will never use the secondary position in the same units, the most common being meters (abbreviated to m) and
meaning of position that refers to ori-
entation, for example in the phrase kilometers (km). We will also occasionally use feet and miles for variety.
“reclining position.” To quantify position and displacement, imagine a tape measure anchored at
the west edge of the scene and stretched to the east:
0 5 10
The bicycle’s displacement between two snapshots is then the tape measure
reading in the second snapshot minus the tape measure reading in the first
snapshot. To avoid cumbersome phrases such as “the tape measure reading in the
second snapshot” we give the tape measure reading a shorter name; physicists like
to use x. By itself, x will refer to a tape measure reading at any time. Subscripts will
refer to specific tape measure readings; for example, x1 is the tape measure reading
in the first snapshot and x2 is the tape measure reading in the second snapshot.
Furthermore, the symbol (the upper-case Greek letter “delta”) will indicate a
change in any quantity; for example, x is the change in x. So the displacement
between the first two snapshots is x = x2 − x1 = 3.5 − 0.5 = 3.
By the simple act of placing the tape measure, we have defined a coordinate
system. A coordinate system consists of an origin (the start of the tape measure),
a direction (numbers increase to the east, for example), and a scale (meters, feet,
inches, or whatever is most convenient). Note that our choice of origin does not
affect the displacement we compute; had we anchored the tape measure 10 m
more to the west, then each of the two readings that determine the displacement
would be 10 m larger, and their difference would not be affected. So, in physics
problems we are free to set the origin where it is most convenient. We may
encounter problems where a proper choice of origin makes the answer easier
to calculate, but the physical result cannot depend on the choice of origin. For
example, we can choose to measure the height of a tennis ball in terms of height
1.2 Velocity 3
above ground or height above the net. This choice affects the numerical value
of the height of the ball and of the height needed to clear the net, but does not
change the answer to the question, “Did the ball clear the net?” This is just one
example of coordinate independence, a key idea that will appear in additional
forms throughout the book.
Check your understanding. In some countries the first floor of a building is

understood to be the floor you walk in on, while in others it is understood to be
the floor immediately above that one. For each of the following statements, assess
whether it is a position or a displacement, and whether it is coordinate-dependent
or -independent: (a) Alice’s office is on the fifth floor; (b) Bob’s office is on the
third floor; (c) Alice’s and Bob’s office are two floors apart.
1.2 Velocity
If displacement tells us how far the bicycle moved, velocity tells us how quickly
it executed this motion. To compute this, we need to introduce an additional
coordinate, time, which is measured by clocks and denoted by t. The difference in Confusion alert
time between measurements of the bike’s position is denoted t, and velocity
is defined as v ≡ x t . The ≡ symbol (read “is defined as”) is used here to
Velocity is one of several words—
reinforce the notion that this is a definition rather than a conclusion. A definition including acceleration, energy, and
momentum—that have specific mean-
is a relationship stronger than mere equality; for example, v = 2 m/s may be true ings in physics but are used loosely
in some particular situation, but we would never write v ≡ 2 m/s. The definition in everyday speech, so take care to
v ≡ x t is useful because it provides a recipe for quantifying the rate of change
understand each physics definition as
it arises.
of the position x. The displacement x alone cannot distinguish, for example,
between the motion of a snail and a sprinter in a 100 m race. The distinction lies
in the sprinter completing the displacement in a small t (thus yielding a large
x x
t ) while the snail requires a large t (thus yielding a small t ).
The direction of motion is inherent in the idea of velocity. If the coordinate
system for the 100 m dash is a tape measure stretched from start to finish,
someone who runs in the wrong direction has a negative velocity because x2 , the
runner’s position at time t2 , is less than x1 , the runner’s position at time t1 . This
makes x = x2 − x1 negative, which in turn makes v = x t negative. In this one-
dimensional coordinate system velocity is a single number, with the direction of
motion encoded by the presence or absence of a minus sign in front of the number.
With coordinate systems that describe two or more dimensions (e.g., a map that
extends north-south as well east-west), the full specification of velocity requires a
bit more care, and we defer that to Section 1.4.
Velocity appears on a motion diagram as follows. Each dot on a motion diagram
indicates an event, which is defined by its time as well as its position. In principle,
we can label each dot in a motion diagram with the time it was recorded, but it is
more convenient to simply record snapshots at regular time intervals so that t
is the same between any two successive snapshots. Then the motion diagram is
a visual representation of velocity as well as position and displacement; with t

constant, any variations in x must be due to variations in v and vice versa. In this
particular motion diagram,
0 5 10
we see that x is the same (+3 m) between any two successive snapshots, so the
velocity here is constant. In fact, we will study constant velocity for the remainder
of this chapter because there is much to say even in this simple case.
Because v ≡ x t , velocity can have units of meters per second (m/s), kilometers
per hour (kph), or miles per hour (mph) for everyday things such as cars, or
kilometers per second (km/s) for extremely fast things such as spaceships. In the
motion diagram we have studied, if the units of distance are meters and the camera
takes a snapshot once each second (t = 1), the velocity of the bike is +3 m/s.
I list these units to help you relate velocity to everyday experience, but
physicists find it helpful to focus less on the specific units and more on what they
mean. We will often do abstract things like compare the velocity of some object
to the velocity of light, to see if they are of comparable size. But if they are of
comparable size in one system of units, then they are of comparable size in any
system of units. So, in a very important sense, units will not matter in much of this
book; what matters is that velocity is a displacement divided by a time. That said,
sometimes attaching specific units to an abstract idea does help you understand
the idea. Feel free to take any abstract statement or idea in this book and take it
for a test drive in the units of your choice.
Check your understanding. What is the velocity of a rocket that moves 10 km

eastward in 0.5 s? What is the velocity of a car that moves the same 10 km in
10 minutes? Compare the two velocities in the same units.
1.3 Galilean velocity addition law

Let us call our bicyclist Alice. In Section 1.2 we used a motion diagram to
determine Alice’s velocity as +3 m/s (or 3 m/s to the east). This really means
3 m/s to the east through the coordinate system we defined. You probably assumed the
coordinate system and attached camera were fixed to the road, thus interpreting
Alice’s velocity as 3 m/s to the east relative to the road. But not all coordinate
systems are fixed to the road. Imagine that the motion diagram data were actually
recorded by a camera in the helmet of a second cyclist, Bob, who is himself moving
relative to the road as shown in Figure 1.1. If this is the source of the motion
diagram data we saw in Section 1.2, we must specify that Alice moves at +3 m/s
relative to Bob.
Figure 1.1 Alice, Bob, and Carol move at different velocities. Arrows represent the velocities of each character as measured in
coordinate systems attached to Alice (left panel), to Bob (middle), and to Carol (right). Any two characters always measure
each other as moving at the same speed but in opposite directions; arrows have been shaded to help you match equal and opposite
velocities. The challenge in this section is to see how relative velocities of two characters, say Alice and Carol, could be deduced from
measurements in a third frame such as Bob’s.
This example demonstrates that the meaning of a velocity depends on the

coordinate system—also known as the frame of reference, or simply frame—in
which it is measured. When you read the phrase “Bob’s frame” picture an entire Think about it
coordinate system attached to Bob; in this frame Bob’s velocity is always zero.
Practice thinking in different frames of reference for a moment. Figure 1.1 Each coordinate system includes time
adds a third character, Carol, who is fixed to the road. The middle panel shows as a coordinate; without this coordi-
nate we could describe locations but
that in Bob’s frame Alice is moving to the east but Carol is moving to the west. To not motion. Time is measured by
see why, imagine the view from a camera attached to Bob: Alice is passing him clocks rather than rulers, so thinking
even as he passes Carol. For more practice, imagine the view from Alice’s frame of time as a coordinate may take some
effort initially—but this effort will pay
as in the right panel of Figure 1.1. In this frame, Bob has a westward velocity, off in the long run.
and Carol has an even larger westward velocity. We will use subscripts to track the
frame in which a velocity is measured: vAB is Alice’s velocity as measured in Bob’s
frame (also stated as “relative to Bob”), vBC is Bob’s velocity relative to Carol,
and so on. Note that any two frames always have equal and opposite velocities Confusion alert
relative to each other: if Carol measures Bob moving east at 5 m/s relative to her
(vBC = 5 m/s), then Bob must measure Carol as moving west at 5 m/s relative to Avoid using terms such as left and
him (vCB = − 5 m/s). right when describing directions of
motion. These terms cause confusion
Let us return to Bob’s frame to ask a fundamental question. If we know what because they depend on the direc-
Bob measures for Alice’s velocity and what he measures for Carol’s velocity, tion a person is (or imagines) facing,
can we deduce what Carol and Alice measure for their velocity relative to each whereas all participants agree on the
meaning of terms such as east and
other? Most people have a strong intuition on this question, based on everyday west.
experience. To use a money analogy, if Alice has $3 more than Bob and Bob has
$5 more than Carol, then Alice clearly has $8 more than Carol. Why would we
not do the same with velocities? If we know that vAB = + 3 m/s and vBC = + 5
m/s, how can it not be the case that vAC = +8 m/s? Abstracting away from specific
numbers, this intuition suggests that velocities add according to vAC = vAB + vBC .
This is called the Galilean velocity addition law. You can make sense of the
subscripts in this equation by thinking of Bob as a middleman: the left side of
the equation cuts out the middleman and predicts the result of a direct velocity
measurement between the other two parties.
Think about it The Galilean law makes intuitive sense, but intuition is often flawed—velocity
measurements are based on rulers and clocks, and do not necessarily behave
The type of addition used in the like money. Science demands a two-pronged strategy here: identify the assump-
Galilean law is referred to as linear. tions behind our intuition so we can present a clearly defined model of nature,
To illustrate that other kinds of addi-
tion are possible, consider a stack and perform experiments to determine whether nature actually follows this
of pillows: because the lower pillows model. Experiments do show that the Galilean law works very well for everyday
compress, the height of the stack is velocities—but not for very large velocities. This section unravels the model
less than the sum of the heights of
the pillows separately. The addition of behind why it works for everyday velocities, so we can better understand (in later
pillow heights is sub-linear. chapters) why it does not work in all situations.
Ready to unravel the assumptions? We are asked to predict vAC (Alice’s velocity
through Carol’s coordinate system) given a measurement of Alice in another
coordinate system. If we assume, as did Galileo, that clock velocities do not affect
their time measurements, then the time t between any two events is the same
regardless of the coordinate system, and we can write vAC = xtAC without putting
any subscript on the t to specify the frame of the clocks involved. This seems
reasonable, but keep in mind that this is an assumption about the behavior of clocks,
to be revisited in later chapters.
Next, we predict xAC (Alice’s displacement through Carol’s frame) know-
ing only xAB (Alice’s displacement through Bob’s frame) and xBC (Bob’s
displacement through Carol’s frame). If we assume (as did Galileo) that ruler
velocities do not affect their distance measurements, then meters of displacement
measured in Bob’s frame are completely interchangeable with those measured in
Carol’s frame. Again, this is an assumption, not a conclusion, and evidence will
forced us to revise this assumption in later chapters. But for now, this assumption
allows us to add displacements as if they had been measured by the same ruler:
xAC = xAB + xBC . Under these assumptions, then, vAC = xtAC = xABt +xBC
.
xAB xBC
We can rewrite this last quotient as t + t , which, under the interchangeable-
time assumption. is the same as vAB + vBC . This completes the proof that
vAC = vAB + vBC , provided that our assumptions about rulers and clocks are
correct.
You are probably not surprised that velocities add this way—anyone who has
walked on a moving sidewalk or train has experienced it. Yet, if all velocities add
this way there will be profound implications:
Nature should have no speed limit. In principle, there is no upper limit to the
speed we can achieve by concatenating an arbitrarily large number of velocity
additions, such as firing a bullet from a missile launched from a moving train and
so on. A more practical way to achieve such high speeds would be in space, where
there is no air resistance, using an engine to provide a long series of small boosts
rather than a few dramatic boosts. But the practical details are less important than
the logical conclusion that the Galilean model must allow arbitrarily high speeds.
Today it is common knowledge that nature does have a speed limit—the speed of
light—so you already know that one or more of Galileo’s assumptions must be
wrong. In later chapters we will discover how and why they are wrong.
The laws of motion are the same in any constant-velocity frame. If all frames
have equally valid distance and time measurements then there is nothing special
about a frame fixed to your portion of the surface of the Earth. Imagine yourself
inside a smoothly moving train or airplane. If you drop an object, it does not fly
backward as it would if it were stuck to the frame of the Earth; it simply falls
straight down relative to the moving vehicle. Galileo was the first to notice this:
inside any laboratory (which is just a more concrete word for frame of reference)
moving at constant velocity, the laws of motion are the same as on the “stationary”
ground. He argued that if the laboratory’s motion has no effect on experiments
inside, there is no reason to declare one laboratory “stationary” and the other
“moving”—we can only say that they are moving relative to each other. We are
tempted to reserve the words “stationary” or “at rest” for labs fixed to the surface
of the Earth, but the insight here is that even Earth need not be stationary—we
would not feel or measure anything different on a stationary Earth versus an Earth
moving at constant velocity. Galileo’s insight into relativity helped overcome a
persistent objection to the idea that Earth orbits the Sun: that if Earth moved, we
would feel it.
Today it is easy to view those who argued “if Earth were moving people would Think about it
feel it” as ignoramuses, but their experience was rife with situations in which
motion is felt. Consider running or horseback riding: you feel the wind in your The velocity of Earth in fact varies
face and dropped objects do fly backward. We now attribute this to air resistance over time, but these variations are too
small to notice in everyday life.
because we can contrast the feeling of riding in a car with the windows open (or
in a convertible with the top down) versus with the windows closed (or the top
up). Seventeenth-century citizens never saw air resistance turned off, nor could
they easily imagine the emptiness of space that allows Earth to move forever
without resistance. A second reason behind the widespread “if you are moving
you feel it” belief is that everyday life is full of variations in velocity, which can be
felt; the laws of motion are not the same in frames that change their velocities. We
defer more discussion of this important point to Chapters 2 and 4.
You might think that glancing out the window of a smoothly moving laboratory
is enough to tell you whether it is moving, but in fact this only tells you whether
it is moving relative to the Earth. This is the origin of the word relativity: we can
determine the relative velocities of laboratories, but there is no such thing as an
absolute velocity.
If the laws of motion are the same in any constant-velocity frame, then perhaps
all the laws of physics are the same in any constant-velocity frame. This in fact
seems to be the case, as no counterexample has ever been found. Experiment
alone can never prove this conjecture because we can never do all possible
experiments. But because no exceptions have been found, we take this conjecture
as a working hypothesis and deduce further consequences that are then tested by
new experiments. This process of hypothetico-deductive reasoning is the backbone
of science. Relativity is a wonderful arena for hypothetico-deductive reasoning

because many fascinating and testable consequences can be deduced from a few
basic principles.
Check your understanding. Aboard a train moving eastward at 90 kph, a bicyclist

rides toward the rear of the train. The speedometer on the bike reads 20 kph.
(a) What is the velocity of the bike relative to the ground? (b) The bicyclist sees
an ant on the bike, crawling at 0.1 kph toward the rear of the bike. What is the
velocity of the ant relative to the ground?
1.4 Velocity is an arrow

Imagine that, in previous sections, Alice was riding her bicycle away from home.
She now returns home:
5 10
From one snapshot to the next, displacement is now negative; for example,
x2 − x1 = − 3. The velocity between those snapshots is also negative because
its numerator (the displacement x2 − x1 ) is negative. The sign of the displacement
or velocity tells us which direction the bicycle moved. Displacement and velocity
are called vector quantities because they describe a direction as well as a size—
think of them as arrows rather than numbers. A quantity that is simply a size
northward component
with no associated direction, such as two cups of flour, is called a scalar

quantity.
In many situations, the size—also called the magnitude—of a vector is more
ort
important than the direction. For example, a 100 kph wind is dangerous regardless
vec
of its direction. Physicists therefore have a special word just to describe the
magnitude of the velocity vector: speed. In the one-dimensional motion diagrams
in this chapter, a speed of 3 m/s can correspond to one of only two velocities: 3 m/s
to the east (+3 m/s) or to the west (−3 m/s). In this special case you can infer the
direction from the sign on the number, but this will not be possible for motions in
two or three dimensions.
Vectors are often described with a magnitude and a direction: for example,
100 m to the southwest or 50 kph to the north-northeast. But we will more
often describe a vector by breaking it down into components that align with the
coordinate system. For example, a 13 m displacement to the north-northeast may
eastward component break down into 5 m to the east and 12 m to the north (Figure 1.2). Keep in mind
that either method is simply a way to describe an arrow. You should always think
Figure 1.2 A vector broken down into of a vector, such as displacement or velocity, as an arrow rather than a number or
perpendicular components. list of numbers.
1.5 Symmetry and the principle of relativity 9
The velocity addition law vAC = vAB + vBC (and all other equations involving
vectors) work with either type of vector description. For those who prefer literally
drawing arrows, there are many internet resources demonstrating graphical vector
addition and subtraction. Those who prefer components should simply apply
the equation separately to each component. Practicing vector laws with a single
component therefore saves time and is usually enough for a solid understanding.
Most examples in this book deal with motion in one dimension, which is depicted
as toward the right (“east”) or left (“west”) of the page. When the direction of
motion is perfectly clear from the context, a simple number such as v = 10 m/s
may be an acceptable way to specify velocity. “Velocity is an arrow” then helps us
see that v = − 20 m/s would be an arrow twice as long in the opposite direction.
Let us practice the velocity addition law with velocities of different signs in one
dimension. Draw this out for yourself: a car moves east with a velocity relative to
the road of vCR = 100 kph and in the frame of the car, a fly flies from front to
back at 10 kph. Because the fly is moving to the west in the frame of the car and
we have decided that eastbound velocities are positive, the velocity of the fly as
observed by the car must be written as vFC = − 10 kph. The velocity of the fly
relative to the road therefore must be vFR = vFC + vCR = − 10 + 100 = 90 kph.
A variation on this example: a child in the back seat of this car throws a toy forward
at 5 kph (in the frame of the car). The velocity of the toy relative to the road is
then vTR = vTC + vCR = 5 + 100 = 105 kph.
Check your understanding. Consider a one-dimensional motion. (a) Can an object

with negative velocity have a positive position (x > 0)? (b) Can an object with
positive velocity have a negative position (x < 0)?
1.5 Symmetry and the principle of relativity

The experimentally determined laws of physics do not seem to depend on where
the experiment is done; one part of the universe is like any other as far as the laws of
physics are concerned. When parts of a whole are similar to each other we say that
the whole has symmetry. For example, the appearance of a wheel is unchanged
by turning it (rotational symmetry), and human beings have a particular kind of
symmetry in which the left half is similar to the right half (bilateral symmetry).
A useful way to think about symmetry is that it allows something to remain Think about it
unchanged when you perform an action on it, such as rotation (for a wheel)
or reflection in a mirror (for a human being). This helps us use symmetry as Real human beings are not exactly
a thinking tool in more abstract situations—for example, we can ask if the laws of symmetric; for example, the heart is
on the left side. In this case physicists
motion remain unchanged when we change the velocity of the laboratory. say the symmetry is “broken”—it is
Symmetry is a big idea in physics for both practical and profound reasons. not perfect but it still provides a useful
Practically, symmetry provides a valuable tool for solving problems, as we shall approximate description.
see throughout the book. More profoundly, the symmetries we observe in the
laws of physics are clues to the nature of the universe we live in. The vast amount
of experimental evidence supporting the principle of relativity—the idea that

the laws of physics are the same in any constant-velocity frame—implies a new,
nonobvious “velocity symmetry” of the universe. This principle by itself is too
broad to allow us to deduce any details such as how to add velocities. If we assume
that Galileo’s velocity addition law is correct, we can fill in many more details; the
resulting set of conclusions is called Galilean relativity (Chapters 3 and 4).
Nature, however, seems to add velocities in a way that approximates the Galilean
law at low speeds while prohibiting speeds above 299,792.458 m/s. Starting in
Chapter 5 we will see how this observation, combined with the principle of
relativity, allows us to deduce a more nuanced set of conclusions called special
relativity. We will then see how understanding special relativity forces us to
think about gravity in a new way; the resulting model of gravity is called general
relativity.
Check your understanding. In what ways are each of these objects at least approxi-
mately symmetric? (a) a pinwheel; (b) a ball; (c) a sea star.
CHAPTER SUMMARY
• Coordinate independence: because the physical result in any situation

cannot depend on your choice of coordinate system, you are free to define
whatever coordinate system you find convenient.
• Galilean velocity addition law: if Alice moves through Bob’s coordinate
system with velocity vAB and Bob moves through Carol’s coordinate sys-
tem with velocity vBC then Alice moves through Carol’s coordinate system
with velocity vAC = vAB + vBC .
• Principle of relativity: the laws of physics are the same in any constant-
velocity frame of reference.
STUDY ADVICE
Research has shown that the best way to study is to practice these concepts from memory without looking at your list
retrieval at spaced intervals. For each of the concepts in and repeat again within a few more days. It may feel awk-
the chapter summary, write down now what you remember ward to put things in your own words but research has
without looking back at the text; the effort of trying to also shown that generating your own statements is key to
remember may be difficult but this effort is good for your learning. This system is much more effective than other
learning. (Of course, you are encouraged to look back at forms of studying, such as highlighting and rereading, and
the text to check and refine your list after writing down will help you target your rereading to where it is most
everything you remember.) Tomorrow, practice retrieving needed.
Exercises 11
Chapter-end exercises and problems will be crucial for Roediger III, and Mark A. McDaniel. This book helped me
strengthening your understanding, but retrieval practice is as an instructor understand the poor results some students
important for getting the big picture and seeing the connec- were getting despite studying hard: some study habits are
tions between different concepts. not only ineffective but also mislead the student into think-
The study advice here is based on Make It Stick: The ing he or she has mastered the material. All students could
Science of Successful Learning by Peter C. Brown, Henry L. benefit from consulting this book.
CHECK YOUR UNDERSTANDING: EXPLANATIONS
The end of each chapter contains model responses to the 1.2 20 km/s to the east and 1/60 or 0.0167 km/s to the east.
Check Your Understanding questions at the end of each (I provide a decimal answer here in case you used a
section in that chapter. Many questions do not have a single calculator, but I recommend keeping fractions as frac-
correct answer; the model response to such questions should tions; this more clearly exposes certain relationships
be considered just one example of a range of potentially and avoids the issue of rounding.)
correct responses. 1.3 (a) 70 kph to the east; (b) 70.1 kph to the east.
1.1 (a) position, coordinate-dependent; (b) position, 1.4 (a) Yes. (b) Yes. More generally, the position of a
coordinate-dependent; (c) displacement, coordinate- particle at a given time tells us nothing about the rate
independent. Note that positions are by their of change of its position, and vice versa.
nature coordinate-dependent. (If you responded 1.5 (a) rotation, but only by a specific amount about a
“coordinate-dependent” to (c) because you were specific axis, leaves the pinwheel unchanged; (b) rota-
thinking of coordinate systems marked off in various tion by any amount about any axis; (c) the sea star
units such as floors, meters, or feet: this is understand- has the symmetry described in part (a) plus mirror
able, but the main point of this exercise was simply to symmetry—which the pinwheel does not have.
understand that the displacement in floors does not
depend on how we label the floors.)
EXERCISES
1.1 State in your own words the distinction between 1.6 Identify each of the following as a vector or a scalar:
position and displacement. (a) 100 kg; (b) 2 blocks north; (c) a 50 kph wind from
1.2 State in your own words the distinction between the west; (d) 1 cup of rice; (e) a top speed of 200 mph.
velocity and speed. 1.7 Train A moves at 200 kph to the east, while on a
1.3 What are the benefits of modeling an object as a parallel track train B moves 200 kph to the west (these
featureless particle? What is lost in this model? velocities are relative to the ground). (a) What is the
1.4 Explain how a motion diagram is made. velocity of train B relative to train A? (b) What is
the velocity of train A relative to train B? (c) Does the
1.5 In what sense does it matter where you put the origin
relative velocity change after they pass each other?
of a coordinate system? In what sense does it not
matter? 1.8 What, in your own words, is the principle of relativity?
1.9 A piece of cargo falling off a truck on a highway is consistent with the principle of relativity, which would
extremely dangerous because it moves at high speed seem to predict that loose cargo will not fly backward
relative to the vehicles on the highway. How is this from the truck?
PROBLEMS
Subsequent chapter endings will list problems as well as completing exercises) is only half the battle at most. The
exercises. The difference is that an exercise follows an greatest challenge for physics students is applying a concept
established procedure (sometimes as simple as summarizing to new situations, and for a good reason—this is the true test
an established point in your own words) while a problem of understanding.
deepens your understanding by forcing you to navigate new You can increase your chance of success in navigating
and more open-ended situations. There is value in each: new situations by making sure you practice each new tool
you need to practice the basics before you can use them or skill as it arises, before you encounter the new situation.
in new ways and new situations. Because problems often Navigating a new situation while attempting to catch up on
go deeper than a single chapter, there are none here— mastering tools and skills is a recipe for cognitive overload.
but be aware that rehearsing established procedures (i.e., This is why I have separated exercises and problems.
Acceleration and Force
2
So far, we have considered coordinate systems moving at constant velocity relative
to each other. Now imagine Alice driving a car at constant velocity relative to the 2.1 Acceleration 13
road and Bob driving in the next lane, not at constant velocity relative to the road. 2.2 Acceleration, force, and mass 14
Bob and Alice must measure nonconstant velocities relative to each other, but
2.3 Accelerating frames and
can Bob argue that he is the one traveling at constant velocity and Alice is the fictitious forces 16
one whose velocity is changing? Your intuition may say that the road frame is a 2.4 Inertial frames 17
good arbiter of this dispute, but why? In this chapter, we will discover a profound Chapter summary 18
difference between constant-velocity frames and other frames by thinking about
these questions. explanations 19
Exercises 19
Problems 20
2.1 Acceleration
An object not traveling at constant velocity is said to be accelerating. If Bob is
accelerating relative to the road, his motion diagram as recorded by a camera fixed Think about it
to the road may look something like this:
Practice applying the logic in the
opening paragraph: why must Alice
and Bob measure nonconstant veloci-
5 10 ties relative to each other?
Between snapshots, Bob moved 2 m, then 3 m, and finally 4 m. If the snapshots

were taken once per second, then his velocity v was 2 m/s between the first two
snapshots, then 3 m/s, then 4 m/s. His velocity increased by v = 1 m/s each
second. The change in velocity per unit time is also known as the acceleration.
Mathematically, acceleration is defined as a ≡ v t , so it has units of m/s per
second or m/s2 . Although this is pronounced “meters per second squared” it is Confusion alert
best understood as “meters per second (change in velocity) each second.”
Imagine that in the road frame Alice’s velocity is a constant 2 m/s to the east. For reasons that will become clear
In the first second of this story she is therefore moving at the same velocity as shortly, acceleration in physics also
includes cases where the velocity
Bob (i.e., she measures him as moving at zero velocity relative to her), in the next decreases with time—what we would
second she measures Bob as moving 1 m/s to the east relative to her, and in the final call deceleration in everyday life.
second of the story she measures him as moving 2 m/s to the east relative to her. So
she agrees with the road frame that Bob’s acceleration is 1 m/s2 . This is a hint that
there is a universal standard of acceleration. Try the argument with hypothetical
observers traveling at any other constant velocity relative to the road: they will

14 2 Acceleration and Force
always measure Bob’s acceleration to be 1 m/s2 . This is remarkable, because these

hypothetical observers do not agree on Bob’s displacement or velocity at any time.
Yet somehow all these disparate coordinate systems manage to agree on his rate
of change of velocity. Perhaps Bob really is accelerating at 1 m/s2 in some absolute
sense, not merely relative to each of these frames.
Before stating this conclusion with any confidence, we consider in Section 2.2
a closely related question: what does Bob have to do to accelerate?
Check your understanding. The text states that if Bob accelerates at 1 m/s2 as
measured in Alice’s constant-velocity frame, then any constant-velocity observer
(regardless of their velocity) must also observe him to accelerate at 1 m/s2 .
(a) Explain to a hypothetical fellow student why this must be true. (b) Build on this
to explain why different constant-velocity observers agree that all their relative
velocities are indeed constant.
2.2 Acceleration, force, and mass

Everyone knows that to get a stationary object moving (i.e., accelerate it so that its
velocity differs from zero) you have to give it a push. Everyone also “knows” from
everyday experience that if you stop pushing, the object will slow down and stop.
Aristotle (384 BCE–322 BCE) generalized this by teaching that the natural state of
motion of any object is to be at rest, and our everyday experience is so salient that
this went unquestioned for millenia. But this generalization is mistaken, because
everyday experience is limited. If you take special care to reduce any rubbing
(also known as friction) of the moving object against anything else—think of an
air hockey puck—you find that an object in motion has a much greater tendency
to stay in motion. The more friction you eliminate, the less slowing you observe—
and in outer space, things really can continue forever because friction is not an
issue. Velocity changes only through interactions with other objects, which we call
Confusion alert forces.
Even without air hockey tables, seventeenth-century thinkers such as Galileo
If an object bounces off a wall without and Descartes began to grapple with these ideas. Isaac Newton (1643–1727) was
slowing, this still qualifies as a change the first to articulate clearly that an object maintains constant velocity unless it
of velocity because the direction of
motion changed. is acted upon by a force. This is Newton’s first law of motion. Technically,
a constant-velocity trajectory implies no net force rather than no forces at all.
Consider an evenly matched tug-of-war: each team exerts a large force on the rope
Confusion alert but these forces—being of equal size and opposite direction—cancel each other
out and leave no net force, so the rope does not accelerate. From our observation
Objects with “constant velocity” that the rope is not accelerating, we can conclude only that there is not net force
include those at rest, which have on the rope; we would be quite mistaken if we concluded that neither team is
constant zero velocity.
exerting any force. Thus, Newton’s first law is best stated: an object maintains
constant velocity unless acted upon by a net force. We may drop the word “net” when
only one force is present, but the “net” concept is always part of the law.
2.2 Acceleration, force, and mass 15
Let’s get more specific about the velocity change caused by any given net force.
We can investigate this empirically: apply forces of different sizes and directions
to an air hockey puck or a ball. You will see that the resulting acceleration is in
the same direction as the applied force, and the amount of acceleration is directly
proportional to the magnitude of the force. We can write this relationship as a ∝ F,
where the ∝ symbol is pronounced “is proportional to.” Now if you compare
the effect of a given force on balls of different masses, you will find that the
acceleration is also inversely proportional to the mass; we write this as a ∝ m1 .
If you experiment further you will also find that no other variable affects the
acceleration. Therefore, the relationship between acceleration, force and mass can
be summarized in one simple equation: a = m F
. This is Newton’s second law of
motion. It is more commonly written F = ma, but the a = m F
form helps you
think of acceleration as the result of applying a force, the effect of which is diluted
by the mass—think of this as the inertia—of the object.
This law is astoundingly useful. When we observe something accelerate—that Think about it
is, move in any way other than a straight line at constant speed—we can infer that
a force was applied even if we do not see directly who or what applied the force. Newton’s second law implies the first:
For example, the Moon’s motion around Earth is not a straight line so it must F = ma implies that a = 0 if and only
if F = 0.
be experiencing a force; we will see in Chapter 16 how Newton realized that this
force must be the same force that pulls apples toward the ground. Furthermore, if
we measure the amount of acceleration—easily done by recording positions and
times—we can infer the net force if we know the mass of the object, or the mass of
the object if we know the net force. We will see later how a chain of such reasoning
allows us to infer the mass of just about anything in the universe.
But what is mass? Everyone has a general sense that the mass of an object
corresponds to the “amount of stuff ” in it: a full bucket of water is undoubtedly
more massive than a partially filled bucket. Mass is not just size, because we all
agree that a small lead ball has more mass than a much larger balloon. We can Think about it
sense that the lead ball has more “stuff ” packed into a smaller volume, but how
can we quantify the amount of “stuff ”? The answer is to stop thinking of Newton’s In Chapter 12 we will discover that by
second law as an empirical pattern based on some intuitive notion of mass, and this definition the mass of an object
depends not just on the masses of
turn it into a definition of mass: apply a force to your test particle, measure the its parts but on how those parts are
resulting acceleration, and take the ratio, m = Fa . This makes mass synonymous arranged, thus making “amount of
with resistance to acceleration, or inertia. The kilogram (abbreviated to kg) is our stuff” an even less useful way of think-
ing about mass.
unit of mass based on the International Prototype Kilogram, a specially made
piece of metal stored in a climate-controlled vault in France (proposals for a
more stable and reproducible definition of the kilogram are being considered).
When we determine the mass of an object we are comparing—through a chain of Confusion alert
intermediary comparison masses—our object’s inertia to that of the International
Prototype Kilogram. Mass is not the same thing as weight;
Mass is inertia. we will address this in Chapter 15.
Check your understanding. Explain why an empty train can accelerate more quickly
than it can when fully loaded.
2.3 Accelerating frames and fictitious forces

We saw in Section 2.1 that all constant-velocity frames agree on Bob’s acceleration
(1 m/s2 to the east), and measure each other as moving at constant velocity. But
what prevents Bob from claiming that he is the one moving at constant velocity
and the other observers are accelerating to the west at 1 m/s2 relative to him?
Certainly, that is what he measures given his coordinate system, so why—other
than majority rule—should his measurement be considered less valid than those
of the other frames?
It turns out that accelerating frames are objectively different: they violate
Newton’s first law. Objects with no net force on them appear to accelerate, and
objects with net force on them may not accelerate. To see this, picture a coordinate
system spanning the interior of an accelerating car. In this frame, passengers
maintain constant positions (they do not accelerate), but they do feel net forces,
such as the force of the seat on your back as the car accelerates forward. This force
objectively exists, as we can see by putting a force gauge—a spring—between your
back and the seat back. When the car accelerates, it is clear to all observers that the
spring compresses; that is, there is a force at work. If the car returns to constant
velocity, all observers agree that the spring returns to normal. The acceleration of
the frame itself causes objectively measurable forces on objects fixed to that frame,
so Newton’s first law cannot work in accelerating frames.
Conversely, in accelerating frames free objects do accelerate. In Figure 2.1,
straight-line path
the shaded area represents the path of a car turning left. As measured in the
constant-velocity frame of the page, a free object such as a phone on the left
pa side of the dashboard continues straight ahead along the dashed line—a textbook
th
of
ca example of Newton’s first law. But as measured in the accelerating frame, the
strai
r
phone slid to the right, and this violates Newton’s first law because force gauges
on the phone measure nothing during this slide. A “force gauge” can be almost
anything; for example, the screen of your phone flexes and may even crack when
a force is applied to it. Picture this in the scenario of Figure 2.1—the phone
is completely safe during its slide across the dashboard, and force is applied
only when it comes to “rest” against the far side of the car. The accelerating
frame thus turns Newton’s first law completely backward. In the constant-
velocity frame of the page, Newton’s first law works as well as ever: the phone
experiences force only when the far side of the car finally forces it off the constant-
velocity path.
Thus, by testing Newton’s first law all observers can agree on which frames are
accelerated and which are constant-velocity. Subway trains make great laborato-
Figure 2.1 Accelerating frames violate
Newton’s first law. In this example, a free ries for practicing the distinction because they start and stop often and accelerate
object following a straight-line path in fairly quickly. While the train is accelerating, passengers who stand must brace
the constant-velocity frame of the page themselves against falling backward, they must be very careful when they walk,
appears, in the accelerating frame of the and if they left a phone on the floor it would quickly scurry all the way to the
car, to accelerate to the right in the back of the car. All these effects vanish when the train reaches constant velocity—
absence of any applied force. regardless of what velocity that is.
2.4 Inertial frames 17
Imagine instead a train that accelerates without end. On this train passengers
never experience constant velocity, so they find it difficult to appreciate Newton’s
first law. For them, the tendency for objects to slide toward the back of the train is
simply a permanent feature of life on the train. They may suggest that the back of
the train simply exerts an attractive force, like gravity, on everything in the train.
Physicists call this a fictitious force: a force invented by accelerated observers
to make Newton’s first law appear to work in their frame. “Centrifugal force” is a
familiar example. Passengers in the car depicted in Figure 2.1 would surely explain
the slide of the phone as caused by “centrifugal force” but really there is no such
force, just the tendency of free objects to continue on constant-velocity paths.
A good mental picture for an acceleration detector is a cup of coffee: the coffee
sloshes whenever the lab changes velocity. We will use this coffee-sloshing test as
an icon for objective tests of acceleration that do not require position and time Think about it
measurements.
The coffee cup illustrates why the
Check your understanding. Alice and Bob are on a spinning merry-go-round when thought experiments of Chapter 1
specified “smoothly” moving trains
Alice rolls a ball toward Bob. What kind of path does the ball follow in the merry- and ships. Real conveyances are sub-
go-round frame? In the ground frame? ject to brief accelerations, also known
as bumps.
2.4 Inertial frames

Constant-velocity frames are called inertial frames to emphasize that Newton’s
first law is valid in these frames. Experimenters in a laboratory can test whether,
for example, a rolling ball maintains constant velocity; if not, the laboratory does
not respect Newton’s first law and thereby does not constitute an inertial frame.
Thus, laboratories can easily determine whether they are accelerating without
having to measure their motion relative to any other frame. In contrast, the only
way a laboratory can determine its velocity is by measuring a velocity relative
to something else, because there is no absolute test of velocity. Any two inertial
frames always measure constant velocity relative to each other. If two frames do
not measure constant relative velocity, at least one must be noninertial.
In laboratories on Earth, Newton’s first law is obeyed to a very good approxi-
mation in the north-south and east-west directions (think of an air hockey table)
but in the vertical direction freely moving objects always accelerate downward
at 9.8 m/s2 . We call this gravity, but it bears some remarkable parallels to
simply living in an accelerating frame. We will revisit and extend this idea in
Chapter 13.
Check your understanding. A dog named Jack has a ball in his mouth and runs
toward his stationary human companion. Jack stops suddenly when he reaches
his human but first drops the ball while still at full speed, so the ball rolls far
beyond. Specify which of the following frames are inertial: a frame attached to
Jack; a frame attached to the ball; a frame attached to the human.
Box 2.1 Newton’s third law
Newton’s third law of motion is one of the most widely misunderstood concepts in physics because the usual wording,
“for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction,” is misleading in multiple ways. Newton’s third law is not
a leading character in this book though, so I will confine my rant to this box.
The law really says that a force is always an interaction between two objects; you will never find an object pushing
itself in isolation. For example, a car “pushes itself forward” by pushing back against the Earth. If this seems abstract,
imagine the car on a road made of loose logs; the car is pushed forward only as the logs are pushed backward. If the
logs are instead fixed to the Earth they are still pushed backward along with the Earth, but their acceleration a = m F
is immeasurably small because m is now the enormous mass of the Earth.

In the interaction between two objects (call them A and B) the two forces, that of A on B and that of B on A,
must be in opposite directions and of the same size. (Otherwise, we could violate Newton’s first and second laws by
forming an object consisting of A plus B that accelerates without an external net force applied.) These two forces are
called “action” and “reaction” in the usual wording, but this is misleading because the latter force was not caused by
the first; instead they are two sides of the same coin. Furthermore, the usual wording seems to imply that nothing
can ever happen because every action cancels itself out. But the true meaning is only that an interaction between
A and B cannot result in an acceleration of “A plus B.”
You can verify this law empirically by pushing against a partner or object with a bathroom scale to measure the
force you are applying. Now insert a second bathroom scale facing the other way to measure the force with which
the partner or object pushes back. Try it not only when you are stationary but also when you slide in response to the
force (try wearing socks without shoes). If the scales are accurate the two readings are always equal.
CHAPTER SUMMARY
• If an object is accelerating, observers in all constant-velocity frames agree

on its acceleration. In physics, acceleration includes all forms of changing
velocity, whether speeding up, slowing down, or changing direction.
• Constant-velocity (also known as inertial) frames respect Newton’s first
law: objects accelerate only when acted upon by a net force. In these
frames, the mere observation that an object has accelerated is enough to
infer the existence of a net force.
• Accelerating frames do not respect Newton’s first law. In these frames
objects follow accelerating paths in the absence of forces, or show no
acceleration despite the clear presence of forces.
• Therefore, we have a foolproof way of distinguishing accelerating frames
from inertial frames. Unlike velocity, the acceleration of a frame is mea-
surable without reference to other frames. Simply put, acceleration is not
relative.
• To find the mass of an object, exert a net force on it, measure the
acceleration, and take the ratio m = Fa . This relationship is also written as
F = ma and is called Newton’s second law.
Exercises 19
2.1 (a) An acceleration of 1 m/s2 means that Bob’s before. The ratio a = F
m therefore decreases when
velocity changes by 1 m/s each second; it has no fully loaded.
bearing on his initial velocity. Different constant- 2.3 In the ground frame the ball is free of forces once it
velocity observers will measure different initial veloc- leaves Alice’s hand, so it follows a straight path. In the
ities for Bob, but when that velocity changes each of merry-go-round frame this must be a curved path,
those observers registers a change compared to their because the frame attached to the merry-go-round
baseline measurement. (b) Instead of Bob consider spins relative to the ground.
a hypothetical Carol whose acceleration is 0 m/s2 .
2.4 The frame attached to Jack is the only non inertial
According to part (a) all constant-velocity observers
frame, because Jack accelerates. (Reminder: a motion
will measure her acceleration to be zero; that is, they
you may consider as “decelerating” counts as accel-
will agree that she is moving at constant velocity. By
erating in the physics sense of changing velocity.) If
extension, no constant-velocity observer can find any
you considered that air resistance eventually slows
other constant-velocity observer to be accelerating.
and stops the ball then a frame attached to the ball
2.2 When fully loaded the train has more mass, but its is also non inertial.
engine is the same so it can apply no more force than
EXERCISES
2.1 A donut is attached to a string and swung in a circle. 2.4 Alice measures Bob’s velocity relative to her and finds
After some time, the string cuts through the soft that it is not constant. (a) What can you conclude
donut and the donut is no longer pulled by the string. about Bob’s measurement of Alice’s velocity relative
What kind of path will the donut promptly begin to to him? (b) Can we conclude that Bob does not define
follow? an inertial frame? Explain your reasoning.
2.2 Mythbusters investigated whether a bullet could be 2.5 A common type of accelerated frame is a rotating
made to follow a curved path by swinging the gun as frame. Consider observers aboard a merry-go-round
it is fired. What do you think they found, and why? moving at constant speed. Is this an accelerated
2.3 A hula hoop is cut at one point and the ends are frame? Explain why or why not.
separated slightly, making a nearly-circular “blow- 2.6 A rocket appears to accelerate itself without pushing
gun.” A marble is inserted and shot out the blow- against any other object (not even against the air,
gun. What path does the marble follow after leaving because it works in empty space as well). How does it
the gun? do this?
PROBLEMS
2.1 Even with the most powerful engine, a locomotive adjust your pushing over time to keep the carts from
can accelerate at most about 4 m/s2 (if it tried to going faster than 2 m/s? (d) Now let us admit that
accelerate more than that, its wheels would slip on there is friction; how must you adjust your pushing
the track). What is the maximum acceleration of a over time to keep a cart moving at 2 m/s?
fully loaded train (including the locomotive) with a 2.6 A rope slides off a table as shown in Figure 2.2.
mass 100 times that of the locomotive? Explain why Note that only the weight of the part of the rope
locomotives are built to be very massive. dangling off the edge of the table provides a force to
2.2 Consider a railroad locomotive applying a con- move the rope, but that the mass of the entire rope
stant force and accelerating all its attached cars. At must move if any part moves. Neglect friction and
some point cars start falling successively off the air resistance. (a) Using Newton’s laws of motion,
back, steadily decreasing the total mass of the train. explain what happens to the acceleration of the
(a) What happens to the acceleration of the con- vertical part of the rope over time. (b) Assuming
nected part of the train over time? Explain why, in that the initial velocity is zero, graph the qualitative
terms of Newton’s laws of motion. Neglect friction behavior of acceleration and velocity as a function
and air resistance. (b) Graph the acceleration and of time. Make sure the plots are vertically aligned
velocity as a function of time. Make sure the plots and consistent with each other.
are vertically aligned with each other.
2.3 A boomerang follows a curving path after it is
thrown. This must indicate a force pushing on the
boomerang, but an object cannot push on itself. How
do you resolve this apparent contradiction?
2.4 A bathroom scale works by reading the compression
of a spring due to your body. (a) Explain why this Figure 2.2 A rope slides off a table.
is not measuring your mass, even if it is measuring
something closely related to your mass. (b) If you 2.7 You are assigned to mark the outside of a train
really had to measure mass, how would you do it? so that when the train accelerates constantly the
Hint: how do scientists measure masses of atoms marks pass a ground-based observer at equal time
and molecules? intervals. Describe how you must arrange the
2.5 You work in a library and need to move two distance intervals between marks.
frictionless carts full of books. Cart 2 is twice as 2.8 The surface of the Earth is a rotating frame, so
heavy as cart 1. You push cart 2 with the same particles moving from one point to another along
constant force that you push cart 1. You cannot run the surface should not follow a straight line. (a)
in a library, so whenever you reach a velocity of 2 m/s How is this evident in wind patterns in your
you stay at that velocity. (a) Draw a plot of velocity hemisphere? (b) Describe and explain how low-
versus time for cart 1, and then on the same plot add pressure weather systems behave differently in the
another line for cart 2. Be sure to label each line with hemisphere opposite to yours. (c) Explain why your
its cart number! (b) Under the velocity plot, make an answer to part (b) does not apply to the direction of
acceleration plot with the time axis lined up with water swirling down a drain. Hint: sketch Earth as
the velocity plot. Again, draw and label one line for if you are looking down on a merry-go-round, and
cart 1 and another line for cart 2. (c) How must you sketch the winds and your sink to scale.
Problems 21
2.9 Use Newton’s third law to explain why astronauts 2.11 The Mythbusters, in the episode Unarmed and
on spacewalks need tethers. Unharmed, need to simulate the force of a bullet
2.10 Explain how a centrifuge works using the concepts hitting a gun. Watch the episode and explain in detail
in this chapter. how Jamie uses Newton’s third law. Furthermore,
explain why Jamie’s solution does not provide an
exact replica of the desired force.
Galilean Relativity
3
With the concepts of acceleration and force established in Chapter 2, we are now
3.1 Motion in two (or more) ready to dig into relativity. Because we are still assuming the Galilean velocity
dimensions 22 addition law is fully correct, the body of reasoning and conclusions presented in
3.2 Projectile motion 23 this chapter is called Galilean relativity.
3.3 Principle of relativity 24
Chapter summary 25
3.1 Motion in two (or more) dimensions
explanations 26
Exercises 26 Galileo studied projectiles and found that motion in the up-down direction is
Problems 26 completely independent of motion in the forward direction. This independence is
true for any two (or more) perpendicular directions you care to examine. Consider
an eastward-moving marble on a table, and give it a push or tap in the direction
of north so it begins moving northeast. Its velocity has changed both direction
and size, so the relationship between the old and new velocities may be difficult
to discern at first. But the relationship is easier to see if we think of the velocity
as consisting of two independent components: an eastward component that is
unaffacted by north-south taps, and a northward component that was intially zero
but became nonzero as a result of the northward tap. To prove this, give the ball
an equal-size southward tap after some time, and the original velocity is restored:
tap
tap
This may seem unremarkable at first, but bears further scrutiny. A motion
diagram recording only the east-west position as a function of time will be
unaffected by the north-south taps. If the motion diagram is unaffected, then no
analysis based on that motion diagram—such as the marble’s east-west velocity
and acceleration at any point in time—can be affected. Any laws of physics we
derive by studying the east-west motion diagram will be the same as if no action
took place in the north-south direction.
Likewise, the north-south component of motion is unaffected by the east-west
motion component. A description of the north-south component alone would
be “an initially stationary marble was set in motion northward by the first tap

3.2 Projectile motion 23
and then stopped dead in its tracks by the second tap.” This makes perfect sense
in terms of Newton’s laws of motion, with no need to reference the east-west
component at all. The laws of motion are true independently in perpendicular
directions.
Section 1.4 briefly introduced the notion of describing a vector (any “arrow”
quantity such as displacement, velocity, or acceleration) in terms of components
aligned with the coordinate system. The marble-tapping exercise illustrates why
this is so useful: the behavior of each component is independent of the others. Think about it
If you have worked with vectors before, you also know that the component
description of a vector simplifies many calculations. For example, adding a three- Velocity is a vector because displace-
dimensional v to a three-dimensional v is as simple as adding the components ment is a vector: when we divide
displacement by t to obtain veloc-
separately. Still, the magnitude-and-direction description of a vector remains ity, direction is preserved because the
powerful conceptually because a vector is most easily pictured as an arrow. In time interval has no direction. Accel-
this book, we will marry the two descriptions as follows. To keep things as simple eration is a vector for similar rea-
sons. In fact, all vectors are based in
as possible, we will generally add vectors only along a single direction (e.g., the some way on the displacement vector,
velocity of a passenger walking along a moving train). This enables us to think in and thereby have similar mathemati-
terms of arrows while calculating with a single component. The independence of cal properties.
components then implies that the understanding we gain by thinking about one
component can be generalized, if and when we are ready to tackle problems that
require multiple components.
Check your understanding. A cart carries a spring-loaded mechanism that shoots

a marble straight up. If the cart is stationary, it is clear that the ball will fall back
down into the cart. What happens if the cart is moving at constant velocity when
the marble is released: does the ball fall back down behind the cart, into the cart,
or ahead of the cart? Search for “ballistics cart” videos on the internet to confirm
your prediction.
3.2 Projectile motion

Now consider a bomb released from an airplane that moves horizontally at
constant velocity, and assume no air resistance. Recall the experimental fact
that objects released near the surface of the Earth always accelerate downward
at 9.8 m s−2 (Section 2.4). The independence of motion in perpendicular
directions means that, after leaving the airplane, the bomb continues with the
same horizontal velocity but in the vertical direction accelerates downward due to
gravity. Figure 3.1 shows a motion diagram of the story, with the bomb released on
the third dot to clearly establish the pre- and post-release motions. The horizontal
distance is the same between any two successive bomb dots because the horizontal
Figure 3.1 Motion diagram of a bomb
velocity is constant, but the vertical distance increases rapidly with time just as with dropped from a horizontally moving air-
any freely falling object. plane (represented by the top row of dots).
Meanwhile, the airplane continues at the same horizontal velocity and zero The bomb was released at the instant the
vertical velocity. The horizontal positions of the airplane and the bomb are third dot was recorded.
24 3 Galilean Relativity
therefore identical; only the vertical positions differ. So, relative to the airplane, the
bomb falls straight down with the usual acceleration due to gravity. Generalizing from
the airplane, we see that in any constant-velocity laboratory or reference frame
near the surface of the Earth, dropped objects accelerate straight downward at
9.8 m/s2 just as they do in a laboratory fixed to the Earth. We need not have an
Think about it actual moving laboratory to make use of this thinking tool. Galileo first developed
this tool when studying the trajectories of cannonballs fired at some angle between
Mythbusters demonstrated the inde- horizontal and vertical. He vastly simplified the calculation by realizing that in
pendence of vertical and horizontal a hypothetical laboratory moving horizontally with the cannonball’s constant
motions for the very high horizontal
speed of 500 m/s achieved by a bullet. horizontal velocity, the cannonball must go straight up and down. This implies
They fired one bullet horizontally and two separate but simple calculations: a horizontal calculation based on constant
simultaneously dropped another from speed, and a vertical calculation based on the simple well-known case of an object
the same height. Both hit the floor at
the same time. launched straight up. Together these components completely specify the trajec-
tory, and do so far more elegantly than a laborious calculation based on angles.
Check your understanding. A hunter sits in a tree waiting for a good shot. He sees
a monkey eating a banana in another tree at exactly his height. He aims the gun
perfectly horizontally and fires. At the instant the bullet leaves the gun, the monkey
drops the banana. What does the bullet hit: the monkey, the banana, or something
else? Why?
3.3 Principle of relativity

The principle of relativity (Section 1.5) is a conjecture that the laws of physics are
the same in any inertial frame. The previous two sections certainly support this
notion. The independence of vector components implies that any law of physics
deduced from studying one component will remain true regardless of the state of
motion expressed by the other components. But the principle of relativity goes
beyond this to conjecture that frame-independence pertains to all the laws of
physics, not just those of motion. We cannot prove this experimentally because
we cannot test all laws in all frames at all times. But so far no real evidence
has ever contradicted the principle of relativity, so it remains a solid basis for
deducing additional nonobvious consequences, which can then be further tested.
Throughout this book we shall see abundant evidence that these nonobvious
consequences really happen. This amply supports the idea that the principle of
relativity is a fundamental part of how nature really works.
The principle of relativity implies that there are no preferred inertial frames:
any inertial frame is as good as any other. In real life, however, it certainly seems
as if there are preferred frames. Objects rolling or sliding “freely” across flat
ground, for example, slow down and come to rest in the frame of the ground
and the air, so that frame seems special. This is compatible with the principle of
relativity if we recognize that such objects are not really free, but are acted upon
by forces of friction and air resistance. Are these forces real, or are they fictitious
Chapter summary 25
forces invented by physicists merely to explain violations of relativity? Real forces

always leave evidence in addition to the observed changes in velocity. In the case of
friction, the sliding object and the ground heat up. With air resistance—or more
generally, forces caused by motion through a medium—we may observe the wake
left in the medium by the object, or perhaps the deformation of the object into a
teardrop shape. This proves that such forces are real.
Practice the habit of thinking of all motion as relative motion; the redundant
adjective relative will be dropped from the nouns motion, velocity, and speed
throughout most of this book. In everyday life we often describe motion without
specifying what the motion is relative to; the context usually implies a particular
reference frame such as the Earth. Thought experiments in this book often follow
this convention, precisely so you can practice the necessary skill of framing a story.
If a rocket is described as moving at 1 million kph to the east, practice thinking
instead there is some frame in which the rocket moves at 1 million kph to the east.
Check your understanding. In the television series Futurama, a robot named Bender
falls asleep in a spaceship’s torpedo tube and accidentally gets fired in the
forward direction. When the crew attempts to speed up to rescue him, they are
unsuccessful; the captain says “It’s no use—we were going full speed when we
fired him, so he’s going even faster than that.” Does this make sense, given that
the ship has engines and plenty of fuel? Explain your reasoning, and remember
that there is no friction in space.
CHAPTER SUMMARY
• It is useful to think of motion in terms of perpendicular components. These

components are completely independent: Newton’s laws of motion apply
separately to each component, and what happens to any one component
has no effect on the other components.
• We gain insight into trajectories by thinking in a frame that moves along
with one component; for example, a cannonball appears to go straight up
and down (exactly as if it were vertically launched) in a frame moving at
the appropriate constant horizontal velocity.
• The principle of relativity states that Newton’s laws of motion (and all
other laws of physics) are equally valid in any inertial frame.
• If the principle of relativity seems not to apply in some situation, look
for the reason that some frame appears to be preferred. Motion through a
medium such as air, for example, causes resistive forces that are not easily
seen and therefore make the air appear to constitute a preferred frame. But
such forces always leave frame-independent evidence, however subtle, that
they are at work.
26 3 Galilean Relativity
3.1 Even while in the air the marble maintains the same 3.3 This does not make sense if the ship has engines.
horizontal velocity as the cart, so the marble is always At the instant of launch we can consider the ship at
in the horizontal position required to re-enter the cart. rest regardless of its speed relative to, say, the nearest
3.2 The bullet will hit the banana because both fall with planet. Now if Bender’s launch gave him velocity v
the same acceleration. Search for “Monkey and a relative to the ship, the ship can simply use its engines
Gun” video demonstrations to see this play out in real to accelerate until it reaches the velocity required to
time. Real bullets are so fast that they have little time overtake him. In the absence of friction, additional
to fall a noticeable distance before hitting the target— pushes forward always increase the forward velocity.
but they do fall.
EXERCISES
3.1 To practice thinking about relatives and absolutes, 3.4 A gun 1 m above the ground fires a bullet horizontally.
(a) identify a real-life situation unconnected to physics Simultaneously, a bullet 1 m above the ground is
where only relative amounts matter, and (b) identify dropped. (a) Do they hit the ground at the same
a real-life situation unconnected to physics where time? Consider the situation both with and without
only absolute amounts matter. Example: (a) a cookie air resistance. (b) Find a video on the web in which
recipe tastes good if the relative amounts of flour, this experiment was actually done. Provide the link
sugar, and so on are correct, regardless of the size and describe the results. Was air resistance a factor?
of the batch; (b) eating ten cookies in a sitting is 3.5 A classic physics demonstration called the drop and
probably unhealthy regardless of how many cookies shoot releases one ball straight down, while another is
others around you are eating. simultaneously shot out the side at the same height.
3.2 This chapter asks you to practice mentally inserting Which, if any, of the balls hits the ground first?
the adjective relative whenever you see the nouns Explain your reasoning.
motion, velocity, or speed. Why not for acceleration? 3.6 Where does a bomber pilot release a bomb, directly
3.3 Watch the video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v= over the target or well before that point? Assume a
yPHoUbCNPX8 and explain it in terms of Galilean “dumb” bomb that simply falls without any course
relativity and its velocity addition law. corrections.
PROBLEMS
3.1 California Jones is crossing Death Canyon on a the bad guy and catch it as it comes down on the
zipline, travelling horizontally at constant velocity and other side. (a) At what angle (as perceived by Jones)
carrying a valuable crystal skull. He approaches a should Jones throw the skull to make sure he catches it,
rival who is standing on the zipline, eager to grab the and why? Describe the skull’s motion from his point
crystal skull. Jones decides to throw the skull up over of view. Neglect any effect of air resistance. (b) Does
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Heti jo naimisen ensi vuonna lahjoitti vaimo hänelle kaksoiset, ja
Aleksander kirjoitti meille tämän tapauksen johdosta ihastusta
uhkuvan kirjeen, josta selvästi näkyi, kuinka ylenmäärin onnellinen
hän oli.
Nyt minä tapasin Aleksander Dmitrijevitshin, sittenkuin me emme

olleet nähneet toisiamme puoleentoista vuoteen. Sitä ennen olin
kohdannut häntä pari kertaa Moskovassa hänen sisarensa talossa,
jossa minä seurustelin ja jonne hän usein tuli käymään tilaltansa.
Minusta hän ei ollut, ei ainoastaan vanhentunut, vaan hän myöskin
näytti reippaammalta ja nuoremmalta kuin ennen. Hän oli ajattanut
poskipartansa, ja hänen hyväntahtoisissa pyöreissä kasvoissaan,
joita kaunisti tiheät viikset, ilmeni rauha ja tyytyväisyys.
Kaksi päivää kohtauksemme jälkeen olimme jo hänen

maatilallansa, joka sijaitsi T:n kuvernementin kaukaisimmassa
sopessa.
Minä hurmaannuin heti maan hiljaisuudesta, josta en ollut saanut

nauttia kahteen kuukauteen. Oli loppupuoli lokakuuta. Sää oli tyyni ja
kirkas. Päivän heleä valo kirjasi koko luonnon; viheriät niityt,
kellertävät metsät ja sinertävä taivas… kaikki oli ihanaa.
Kun me ajoimme pihalle ja astuimme yksikerroksiseen

harmaaseen taloon, tuli iloiten meitä vastaan Aleksanderin koko
perhe. Ainoastaan jo tuosta vastaanotosta, lasten riemuhuudoista,
jotka kaikki heti häntä syleilivät ja melusta, minä ymmärsin millainen
isä hän oli.
Aleksander Dmitrijevitsh esitti minut vaimollensa. Ljudmila

Ivanovna oli mielestäni hyvin kaunis.
"Tässä on", sanoi hän vaimolleen osoittaen minua, "Semjon
Petrovitshin poika, josta minä usein olen puhunut sinulle. Hän tahtoo
koota meillä voimia, me pidämme hänestä hyvän huolen, lähetämme
hänet metsästämään ja pidämme luonamme niin kauvan kuin
suinkin; nuori mies ehkä käy iloisemmaksi."
"Minua ilahuttaa, minua ilahuttaa, meidän on niin ikävä, täällä

maalla", sanoi Ljudmila Ivanovna, löi kättä ja vähän punastui.
Minä ihmettelin heti hänen puhettansa. Hän käytti samaa

puheenpartta kuin palvelustytöt. Minä tiesin kyllä, että Aleksanderin
vaimo ei kuulunut hienoimpaan seurapiiriin; mutta kuitenkin en olisi
luullut, että hän tervehtisi minua tuohon jokapäiväiseen, liian nöyrään
tapaan.
Minä vietiin pieneen, aivan yksinäiseen Aleksander Dmitrijevitshin

työhuoneen vieressä olevaan huoneeseen. Minusta pidettiin heti
huolta eikä unhoitettu vähäpätöisimpiäkään seikkoja, ja minä tunsin
itseni kohta ensimmäisenä päivänä niin tyytyväiseksi, että minusta jo
näytti, kuin minun epätietoisa synkkämielisyyteni ja luuloteltu
sairauteni olisi täysin kadonnut.
III.
Täällä minä alotin nyt viettää varsin säännöllistä ja terveellistä

elämää.
Kohta aamulla teetä juotuani lähdin pyssy olalla ja koira mukana

ampumaan kyntölintuja, joita sielläpäin oli runsaasti, myöhäisestä
syksystä huolimatta. Kello kolmatta käydessä palasin minä kotia.
Koko iltapäivän vietin Aleksander Dmitrijevitshin ja hänen perheensä
seurassa.
Me kävimme kartanon laveilla mailla, tarkastimme maanviljelystä

ja illoin istuimme kaikin yhdessä ruokahuoneessa. Me puhuimme
monista asioista, luimme ääneen tahi pelasimme shakkia, minä ja
Aleksander Dmitrijevitsh.
Ljudmila Ivanovna istui sillä aikaa pöydän ääressä, usein hän

myöskin soitti piaanoa ja säestäen lauloi puoliääneen romansseja.
Silloin tällöin säestin minäkin hänen lauluansa. Illan tultua menivät
lapset, tavallisesti Dunjashkan kanssa lastenkamariin. Vasta
kahdeksan tienoissa tulivat he ruokasaliin ehtoollista syömään.
Vanhimmat — kaksoiset, tyttö ja poika, jotka olivat laihat ja kalpeat
— olivat äitinsä näköiset ja saamattomia sekä harvapuheiset, jota
vastoin nuorin tytär, kolmivuotias Tanja, oli vallan toista ja sai kaikki
ihmettelemään vilkkauttaan ja hilpeyttään. Aleksander Dmitrijevitsh
rakasti häntä kiihkeästi. Hän otti hänet syliinsä ja leikki ja jutteli
hänen kanssaan, vaikka hän hyvin vähän välitti toisista lapsistaan.
Näytti siltä kuin Tanjakin olisi rakastanut isäänsä enemmän kuin
toisia ja hyväili häntä erityisellä lempeydellä.
"No, Tanja kulta, juokse kilpaa minun kanssani", sanoi Aleksander

Dmitrijevitsh, kehoittaen tytärtänsä leikkimään.
"Kohta, kohta", vastasi Tanja sukkelaan, mutta sensijaan että hän

olisi juossut kilpaa isänsä kanssa, juoksi hän liverrellen pois hänen
luotaan.
"Sinähän juokset pois luotani".
"Sinä et saa minua kiinni, sinä et saa", huusi Tanja, juoksi pöydän
taakse, taputti käsiään ja hyppäsi iloisena samalla paikalla.
"Ah, sinä rakas tyttöni", sanoi Aleksander Dmitrijevitsh lempeästi,

kiiruhti hänen luoksensa, nosti hänet käsivarrelleen ja rupesi
suutelemaan häntä.
"Isä, isä kulta". Lapsi toisti lukemattomia kertoja nämä

hyväilynimet, kääntäen pois päätänsä, "isä kulta, kulta isä!"
Tämä pikku Tanja oli todellakin hurmaava, iloinen ja rakastettava

olento. Hänen sointuva äänensä, hänen aina hymyilevät kasvonsa
pienine, mustine silmineen, hänen kiehkurapäänsä ja tuo pieni vireä
ja solakka vartalonsa viehättivät myöskin minut kokonaan. Ei voinut
olla ilolla katselematta tuota lasta.
Hän tottui pian myöskin minuun, ja minä sain, niinkuin toisetkin,
ottaa häntä syliini ja leikkiä hänen kanssansa. Varsinkin kuuntelin
minä suureksi mielihyväkseni, kuinka hän kutsui isäänsä. Kun isä oli
huoneessa, puhui Tanja ainoastaan hänen kanssansa ja toisti yhtä
mittaa tuota hyväilevää "isä, isä kulta, kulta isä!"
Tuo "isä kulta" kuului erittäin ihanalta ja kujeelliselta. Ellei Tanjan

ääntä kuulunut talossa, voi olla varma, että hän nukkui.
Aleksander Dmitrijevitsh näytti hyvin onnelliselta. Sittenkuin hänen

oli täytynyt elää niin monta vuotta sairaan, lapsettoman vaimonsa
kanssa, oli hän nyt saanut täyden perheen, johon hän oli kiintynyt
sydämensä pohjasta. Hän sai nauttia iloja, joista hän ennen ei ollut
uneksinutkaan.
Hän rakasti hellästi myöskin kaksoisiaan. Teetä juodessa meni

hän usein heidän luoksensa, kumartui heidän yli, syleili heitä
molempia samalla kertaa — he istuivat aina vieritysten — puhui
heille helliä sanoja ja suuteli heitä.
Mutta hän virkkoi tavallisesti: "no, no, älkää olko noin synkän
näköisiä, kyllä kaikki vielä hyvin käy" — ja silloin hänen äänessään
kuului surumielisyyden vivahdus, sillä häntä suretti, etteivät hänen
vanhimmat lapsensa olleet oikein niinkuin toiset lapset.
Silloin kaksoiset hymyilivät arasti ja kävivät iloisemmiksi.
Aleksander Dmitrijevitsh rakasti vaimoansa yli kaiken. Hän

jumaloitsi häntä sokeasti, eikä siinä ollut tarpeeksi, että hän olisi
huomannut vaimonsa virheitä, mutta hän ei uskaltanut ajatellakaan
sitä mahdollisuutta, että niitä olisi voinut olla hänessäkin.
Minä muistan selvästi kuinka se minua ihmetytti.
Minä en olisi koskaan uskonut, että rakkaus voisi ulottua niin

pitkälle. Hän seurasi vaimonsa joka askeletta ja jokainen
pikkuseikka, joka koski Ljudmila Ivanovnaa, huoletti häntä.
"Mene kävelemään, kultani, sää on niin kaunis, muuten sinä nukut

taas levottomasti", toisti hän joka aamu, kun oli juotu teetä.
"Ole kaikin muodoin syömättä kaalia, aarteeni, minä pelkään…

sinähän valitit eilen", sanoi Aleksander hänelle päivällistä
syödessämme.
"Sinä näytät niin kalpealta tänään, iapsukaiseni, tee minulle se

palvelus, että menet levolle, sinä olet väsynyt", sanoi hän
vaimollensa illalla.
Ja Ljndmila Ivanovna rypisti joka hänen sanallensa otsaansa,

vaikk'ei hän vastannut mitään. Minä huomasin sen, mutta
Aleksander Dmitrijevitsh ei ajatellut lainkaan sitä, että hänen
rakkautensa kävisi hänen vaimollensa joskus vastukselliseksi. Joka
kerta, kun Ljudmila Ivanovna soitti pianoa ja lauloi, innostui
Aleksander Dmitrijevits sanomattomasti. Hän huomautti erittäin
äänen puhtaasta soinnusta ja esittämisen sydämellisyydestä, ja
tästä minunkin täytyi häntä kehua. Muutoin hän ei suinkaan laulanut
huonosti.
"Laula tuo laulu, sinä tiedät, aarteeni", oli Aleksander

Dmitrijevitshillä tapana sanoa joka ilta, "Oi armas enkelini, halaa
minua. Se on minun lempiromanssini".
Ja Ljudmila lauloi miehensä lempiromanssin.

"Kuule", sanoi hän sitten, kääntyen minun puoleeni, "eikö se ole
hurmaava?"
"Oi armas enkelini, halaa minua", lauloi hän tunteellisesta
"Jos sinä vaan tietäisit, kuinka hurmaavan kiltti ja lahjakas minun

vaimoni on; ja hän on todellinen kaunotar — minun Ljudmilani —
eikö totta?"
Mutta kaikkea tuota minä en voinut tietää. Minä en havainnut

Ljudmilassa kaikkia näitä ominaisuuksia. Hän oli kyllä jokseenkin
kaunis, mutta että hän olisi ollut viisas, hyvä ja lahjakas, sitä minä en
voinut parhaimmallakaan tahdollani tunnustaa. Ljudmila Ivanovna
muistutti minulle käytöksellään aina kissaa.
Lyhytkasvuinen, ryhti eteenpäin kallistunut, enemmän lihava kuin

laiha, viheriäiset, viekkaat silmät, joissa aina piili jotakin kaksimielistä
ja ilkeätä, oli Ljudmila. Hänellä oli punainen tiheä taaksepäin
kammattu tukka. Hän liikkui hiljaa ja kuulumattomin askelin
väljällänsä olevassa mustassa puvussaan. Jos hän puhui jonkun
kanssa ystävällisesti, ei tietänyt, oliko hänen sanoillansa vilpitön
tarkoitus, vai oliko ystävyyden osoitus pelkkää teeskentelyä. Jos hän
oli sitten kenen kanssa tahansa yhdessä… lastensa tahi miehensä
kanssa, niin ei olisi voinut päättää, oliko hän hyvä äiti ja vaimo, vai
oliko hän ylipäänsä hyvä nainen vai ei. Minä en tullut sen
viisaammaksi siinä suhteessa, rakastiko hän miestänsä ja lapsiansa.
Hän oli 24 vuoden vanha eikä ollut nauttinut erityistä sivistystä,

lukuunottamatta sitä, että hän oli viettänyt kuukauden
kasvatuskoulussa. Kotona vanhan, hyvin niukan sivistyksen saaneen
tilanomistajattaren luona, joka eli yksinäisyydessä, oli vallan
mahdoton täyttää hänen laiminlyötyä kasvatustansa; hän ei oppinut
muuta kuin suolaamaan sieniä ja ruokkimaan kalkkunoita.
Mutta omasta mielestään oli Ljudmila hyvin sivistynyt ja

maailmanviisas. Hän oli tietävinänsä Pietari Suuresta; hän näytti,
että hänellä oli jotakin käsitystä nihilisteistä ja intelligenssistä ja että
hän vielä tiesi sanoa, missä Ruotsi ja Norja ovat; hän osasi lausua
nopeasti "charmant", hän lauloi ja soitti pianota. Huolimatta näistä
kaikista ominaisuuksistaan, minun on suoraan tunnustaminen, että
sydäntäni oikein kirveli ajatellessani, että Aleksander Dmitrijevitsh oli
vaimokseen sattunut saamaan sellaisen naisen, joka ei lainkaan
sopinut hänelle hienotunteiselle miehelle. Minusta hän olisi voinut
valita itselleen sopivamman vaimon, mutta nähdessäni taas kuinka
onnelliselta hän näytti kodissaan, luulottelin minä päättäneeni väärin.
"Miks'ei Ljudmila olisi sopiva vaimo Aleksander Dmitrijevitshille?

Senkötähden ett'ei hän osaa puhua niin kauniisti ja että hän
hymyilee niin kummallisesti? Siinä minä tuomitsen väärin."
IV.
Neljä päivää oli jo kulunut minun tulostani Aleksander Dmitrijevitsh

oli erittäin hyvä ja hellä minua kohtaan. Hän arvasi kaikki minun
toivomukseni, ennenkuin minä ehdin niitä ilmoittaakkaan. Hän otti
selvän minun lempiruoistani ja piti huolen siitä, että minulle niitä
tarjottiin.
Minä olin hänelle rakkaana vieraana, sillä hän oli tuntenut minun
vanhempani niin kauan ja rakasti meidän kotiamme niinkuin
omaansa. Sitä enemmän tahtoi hän olla minulle hyödyksi. Myöskin
Ljudmila Ivanovna oli kohtelias ja hyvä minulle, vaikka hänen
ystävyytensä näytti minusta teeskenneltyltä ja teki sentähden
luonnollisesti minuun ikävän vaikutuksen.
Kun me eräänä iltana istuimme teepöydän ääressä, kysyi häneltä

Aleksander Dmitrijevitsh, joka tapansa mukaan huolehti hänestä,
minkätähden hän oli niin surullinen.
"En minä ole surullinen", vastasi Ljudmila Ivanovna äreästi.
"Älä nyt suutu, armaani, en minä tarkoittanut loukata sinua", sanoi

Aleksander Dmitrijevitsh, kummastuen ja murheellisena.
"Ethän sinä loukkaa minua, mutta minä olen todellakin väsynyt
sinun ijankaikkisiin kysymyksiisi; milloin minä olen kalpea, milloin
surullinen, väliin yhtä, väliin toista…"
"Mutta kultani, kuinka sinä voit sanoa niin", sanoi Aleksander

Dmitrijevitsh nuhdellen.
Häntä näytti Ljudmilan tuo hänelle vallan odottamaton käytös

suuresti hämmästyttävän. Surun ja kärsimyksen ilme painui hänen
kasvoillensa. He olivat kumpikin vaiti. Minä katsahdin Ljudmila
Ivanovnaan.
"Nyt vasta näkee mikä ihminen hän on", ajattelin minä. Äkkiä
lähetti hän minulle tuskin näkyvän hymyn ja katsoi minuun
viheriäisillä silmillänsä. Minä huomasin niissä pahan hohteen.
Vaitiolo kävi tuskalliseksi.
Silloin juosta karkasivat lapset meluten huoneestansa ja

tauvottivat hiljaisuuden.
"Isä, isä kulta, me rakennamme huoneita, pieniä kivihuoneita",

huusi
Tanja.
Aleksander Dmitrijevitsh otti hänet syliinsä ja käveli hänen

kanssaan hiljaa edes takaisin. Ljudmila Ivanovna seurasi heitä
katseillaan.
"Se on todellakin sietämätöntä", rupesi hän valittamaan, kun

Aleksander Tanja selässänsä oli poistunut huoneesta. "Aleksander
Dmitrijevitsh (hän kutsui miestänsä aina niin, aivan kuin tunnustaen
hänen henkistä etevämmyyttänsä) on toimissaan kaiket päivät, ja
minä olen aina yksin, alinomaa yksin, ilman seuraa, ilman huvituksia.
Minä iloitsen suuresti teidän käynnistänne luonamme. Ei kukaan ole
tähän asti tullut tänne; rauhantuomari vaan silloin tällöin poikkeaa
meille, mutta hänkin on jo vanha. Sitä paitsi Aleksander Dmitrijevitsh
saattaa itsellensä liian paljon vaivaa minun tähteni, väliin minä väsyn
kauheasti häneen…"
"Hänkin jo vanha…" minä toistin mielessäni Ljudmilan sanat — ne

olivat törkeitä eikä suinkaan kauniita.
Hän istui teekeittiön luona ja tarjosi teetä.
"Aina minun täytyy jäädä kotia", jatkoi hän, "ainoastaan kerran

olen minä ollut tanssiaisissa klubissa, siellä oli niin hauskaa… Ah,
kuinka minun oli hauskaa! Siellä oli niin paljon upseeria… Pidättekö
te tanssista?"
"Kyllä, joskus", vastasin minä vastahakoisesti.
Minä yhä vielä näin silmissäni Aleksander Dmitrijevitshin

hyvänsuovat, surulliset kasvot.
Mutta eriskummallista kyllä, vaikka Ljudmila Ivanovnan valitukset

ja hänen käytöksensä olivat minulle vastenmielisiä ja hänen raaka
puheensa pahasti loukkasi minua, oli hänessä tällä hetkellä jotakin
puoleensa vetävää, vieläpä viehättävääkin. Hän keskusteli nyt niin
avosydämmisesti ja vilpittömästi minun kanssani, että minä oikein
otin osaa hänen suruunsa ja minun tuli häntä sääli, hänen miehensä
kun tarjosi hänelle niin vähän huvituksia.
"Miksi te ette pyydä Aleksander Dmitrijevitshiä käymään

kanssanne paikassa ja toisessa; sitä hän ei varmaankaan kieltäisi
teiltä", sanoin minä yhä enemmän osaa-ottavaisesti.
Minä rupesin ihailemaan hänen pientä ja pehmeätä kättänsä,

jonka suonet näkyivät hyvin pirteästi ja jossa hän piti hopealusikkaa.
"Ah, en, minä en tahdo pyytää häntä siihen, minä tiedän, ettei hän
mielellänsä käy minun kanssani vieraissa, ja mitä se
hyödyttäisikään…
Nythän te olette tullut tänne meidän luoksemme, ja minua
ilahuttaa…"
Hän veti suunsa vinoon ja hymyili ainoastaan yhdellä suunkulmalla.
Minä katselin häntä. Meidän katseemme kohtasivat toisensa, ja

nämät jokseenkin pitkälliset ja tutkivaiset katseet merkitsivät sekä
hänellä että minulla jotakin epärehellistä. Minä tunsin, että minun
sydämmeni kuohui. Täytymys, joka tähän asti oli leimannut
seurusteluamme, oli tällä hetkellä täydelleen haihtunut ja antoi
arvaamatonta sijaa molemminpuoliseen lähestymiseen.
Myöhemmin illalla, kun lapset olivat menneet, levolle, istuimme

minä ja Aleksander shakkipöydän ääressä: mutta hän ei ollut iloinen
eikä laskenut leikkiä niinkuin ennen. Ljudmila Ivanovna oli taas
päinvastoin niin vilkas ettei koskaan ennen, hän lauloi paljon ja soitti
valssin "Mennyt aika". Hänen poskiansa punotti ja hän puhui
taukoamatta. Minä vastasin hänen yksinkertaisiin kokkapuheisiinsa,
mutta minä huomasin, että vaikka Aleksander Dmitrijevitsh nauroi,
häntä ei kuitenkaan miellyttänyt, että hänen vaimonsa laski leikkiä
minun kanssani. Hän luotti kuitenkin minuun ja vaimoonsa, niin että
ainoastaan nuo Ljudmilan edellisellä hetkellä lausutut sanat
pahoittivat hänen mieltänsä ja ne, ne nyt turmelivat koko hänen
iltansa. Sitä paitsi oli Aleksander Dmitrijevitsh sekä hengellisesti että
ruumiillisesti likinäköinen eikä hän sentähden huomannut sitä, minkä
minä äkkiä keksin ja minkä jokainen tulokas olisi heti huomannut,
Niissä katseissa, joilla Ljudmila tarkasteli miestänsä, oli jotakin
halveksivaa ja pahaa.
Kun me illalla erosimme toisistamme, piti Ljudmila minun kättäni

omassa kädessään kauvemmin kuin muutoin ja hän puristi sitä
kovemmin kuin ennen. Taas hän katsoi minuun niin kummallisesti,
niinkuin ensin teepöydän ääressä, ja tuo katse sai minut
rauhattomaksi. Aleksander Dmitrijevits sanoi surumielisenä minulle
hyvää yötä, ja minä lähdin huoneeseeni.
Maata pantuani tunsin minä itseni rikolliseksi. Minun omatuntoni ei

ollut puhdas ja rauhallinen. Minä olin näkevinäni edessäni tänä iltana
kiihoittuneen Ljudmilan hänen viheriäisine, vetistyneine silmineen ja
hänen rinnallaan Aleksander Dmitrijevitshin suuren hyväntahtoisen
muodon ja murheelliset kasvot.
"Mutta millä ja ketä vastaan olen minä rikkonut?" ajattelin. "Hän

vaan keikailee minun edessäni — siinä kaikki."
Mitään muuta ei voinutkaan tulla kysymykseen, ja minä koetin

rauhoittaa itseäni sillä ajatuksella.
Mutta tietämättäni olin taas tuntevinani hänen valkoisen ja

pehmeän kätensä minun kädessäni ja näkevinäni hänen kostean
katseensa tähystävän minua.
"Niin, hänen käytöksensä minua kohtaan on todellakin muuttunut",

ajattelin minä. "Ensi päivinä oli hän maltillinen, enkä minä käsittänyt
häntä; nyt on vallan toista. Hän ei rakasta miestänsä, joka
päinvastoin on hänelle vastenmielinen. Mutta kuinka hän on
kaunis!… Mitä tyhmyyksiä tämä on?" ajattelin jälleen, "vai olenko
minä tullut hulluksi? Hänhän on Aleksander Dmitrijevitshin vaimo!…"
Kun minä seuraavana aamuna astuin ruokahuoneeseen, olivat jo

kaikki siellä koossa, ja kaikki näyttivät olevan parhaimmalla tuulella.
Puolisot olivat rakentaneet rauhan. Aleksander Dmitrijevitsh oli
jälleen iloisella ja hyvällä mielellään. Ljudmila Ivanovna taas oli
kainona ja maltillisena. Hyväillen hän puhui miehensä kanssa ja oli
minulle tyly. Mutta minä näin kyllä, että hän teeskenteli. Hän oli vaan
näön vuoksi hellä miehellensä, mutta antoi minulle niinkuin
edellisenäkin päivänä, salaisia silmäyksiä. Aleksander Dmitrijevitsh
ei huomannut mitään.
Sinä päivänä piti hänen matkustaman kaupunkiin virkatoimissaan.

Kun me olimme juoneet teetä, jätti hän meidät. Ljudmila Ivanovna
painoi suutelon hänen sileäksi ajetulle poskelle.
"Ehkä minun täytyy jäädä kaupunkiin yöksi", sanoi Aleksander

Dmitrijevitsh istuen vaunuissa, "minä kyllä en sitä luule, mutta pidä
huoli, armaani, siitä ettei meidän ystävämme ole ikävä. No, minä
palaan kotia jo illalla."
Rauhallisena ja tyytyväisenä jätti hän meidät.
Heti kun hän oli lähtenyt, menin minäkin kotoa niinkuin minulla oli
joka päivä tapana tehdä, metsään ampumaan lintuja. Tänä päivänä
se oli minusta erittäin mieleistä, melkeimpä välttämätöntä. Minä
tahdoin päästä selville siitä, mikä minua kiusasi. Minä kuljin kauan
pensastossa ja tiheän metsän rinteellä ja ammuin joitakuita
kyntölintuja.
Mutta minä en voinut pitää ajatuksiani koossa, oliko siihen sitten
syynä se, että minä olin väsynyt vaiko jotain muuta. Minä tunsin taas
tuota entistä tahdonheikkoutta ja minä antauduin hiomisille
ajatuksille, niille ajatuksille, joista jo olin kärsinyt Moskovassa. Minä
ymmärsin, ett'ei itseänsä voi minnekään paeta.
Minä olin täydelleen Ljudmila Ivanovnan ja hänen viheliäisten

silmiensä ja polttavien käsiensä vallassa.
Voi tuntua kummalliselta, mutta hänen kuvansa oli painunut niin

syvälle minun mielikuvitukseeni, että minä en voinut ainoastaan
vapautua siitä, vaan minä myös en nähnyt enkä ajatellutkaan mitään
muuta. Minä koetin vakuuttaa itselleni, että Aleksander Dmitrijevitsh
oli minun vanha ystäväni, ett'ei minulla ollut oikeutta ajatella hänen
vaimoansa sillä tavoin, että minä olin paatunut ja turmeltunut olento,
jos voisin antautua moisten ajatusten valtaan… mutta mikään ei
auttanut. Minä tiesin, mitä naisia hän oli. Minä käsitin nyt hänen
käytöksensä minua kohtaan, mutta minulta jo puuttui voimia ajatella
hänestä toisella tavoin.
"Mutta hänhän on Aleksander Dmitrijevitshin vaimo, tuon hyvän ja

rakastettavan miehen, joka on kantanut minua ja minun veljiäni
käsillänsä", toistin minä rauhoittuakseni.
"Sehän on halpamaista ja inhoittavaa", sanoin minä itsekseni, ja

sitä seuraa omantunnon vaivat ja tuskat".
"Tietenkin… niinkin… mutta… hän on niin hurmaava! …"
Ja jälleen jouduin riettaiden ajatusten ja himojen valtaan.

Sillä tapaa minä kiusaamistani kiusasin itseäni kuleskellen ympäri
metsässä. Eläin oli minussa herännyt ja se kärsi hirveästi. Minä
tahdoin ajaa pois itsestäni sen, mikä minua kiusasi, mutta voimat
puuttuivat minulta. Ljudmilan ja minun välilläni oli solmittu näkymätön
sähkövirta, enkä minä enää jaksanut sitä katkaista.
V
Kun olin menossa kotia, kello kahden vaiheilla päivällä, tuli Ljudmila
Ivanovna minua vastaan kartanon läheisyydessä. Hänen kanssansa
olivat hänen kaksoisensa, hän oli ilman hattua, mutta hän oli
heittänyt päällensä mustan lämpöisen viitan.
"Oletteko te väsynyt?" kysyi hän minulta. "Me päätimme tulla teitä

vastaan. Teidän ystävänne Tanja ei tahtonut tulla mukaan; vaan
mieluummin jäädä kotia lapsentytön kanssa; hänen on ikävä, kun
hänen isänsä on poissa. Miten ihana on ilma tänä päivänä!"
"Kyllä", sanoin minä ja tunsin, kuinka hänen odottamaton tulonsa

hermostutti minua.
"Minä olen ajatellut teitä koko päivän", sanoin minä; nuo sanat
pääsivät suustani huomaamattani.
"Vai niin? Ja minä teitä. Se on totta. Tulkaa nyt kotia, niin me

syömme päivällistä."
Me kävimme toistemme rinnalla. Hän uhkui verevyyttä ja

nuoruutta. Tuoksu hänen ruumiistaan ja haju kuihtuneista
koivunlehdistä ja kosteasta maasta yhteisesti myrkyttivät hermojani
ja riistivät minun tahdonvoimani viimeisenkin jäännöksen. Kaksoiset
juoksivat edellämme, suuret kummikalossit pienissä ohutsäärisissä
jaloissaan.
"Tiedättekö, minulla on kerrottavana teille uutinen", sanoi Ljudmila

Ivanovna hetkisen oltuamme vaiti, kääntäen päänsä minua kohden
ja katsoen minua suoraan silmiin.
"Mikä uutinen?"
"Arvatkaa!"
"Koskeekohan se Aleksander Dmitrijevitshiä?"
"Aivan niin, ja mitä luulette sen tietävän?"
"Eikö hän tule tänään kaupungista kotia?"
"Te olette arvannut oikein. Vaunut palasivat äsken, ja kuski toi

minulle kirjeen, mieheni kirjoittaa, että hänellä on tärkeitä asioita
kaupungissa toimitettavana ja tulee sentähden kotia vasta
huomenna."
"Mahdotonta", huudahdin minä epäillen.
"Totta se on, minä vakuutan…" kuinka minä osasinkaan arvata

uutisen jonka hän tahtoi ilmoittaa minulle. Luultavasti hänen
keikailemisensa ja sen salaperäisyyden tähden, jolla hän siitä puhui.
Olihan sitä paitse itse Aleksander Dmitrijevitsh lähtiessään sanonut
tulevansa kotia ehkä vasta seuraavana päivänä.
Tultuamme kotia, söimme päivällistä ja sitten kävelimme lasten

kanssa puutarhassa. Kello 5 joimme teetä. Illalla istuin salissa hänen
kanssaan kahden. Minä luin sanomalehteä ja hän kirjaili korko-
ompelua.
"Ei, minun täytyy matkustaa jo tänä päivänä iltajunassa", päätin

minä ja yhä vaan luin, ymmärtämättä mitä luin. "Sehän on kauheata,
hänhän antaa minun selvästi ymmärtää… Aleksander Dmitrijevitsh
parka… ja minäkin… mutta kauheinta tässä on se, ettei hän näe
mitään; senpä tähden kaikki näyttää niin yksinkertaiselta".
"Aikanne kuluu teiltä Moskovassa kai hyvin hauskasti?" kysyi

Ljudmila
Ivanovna ja hänen silmistään loisti samalla kummallinen valo.
"Oh niin, tavallansa", vastasin minä.
"Ja minun on täällä niin ikävä", jatkoi hän, nostamatta silmiänsä

työstään. "Aleksander Dmitrijevitsh on kaikessa tapauksessa jo
vanha… minä kyllä kunnioitan häntä suuresti, mutta kuitenkin…
hänhän voisi minulle olla isänä. — —"
"Jo vanha… voisi olla isänä…" toistin minä mielessäni, "en, minä
en erehdy."
Samassa hän näytti minusta vastenmieliseltä. Kun hän erityisellä

äänenpainolla lausui sanan "vanha" ja useamman kerran toisti
saman sanan, oli hän minusta inhottava. Minä ponnistin viimeiset
voimani ja nousin seisoalleni.
"Tiedättekö", sanoin hänelle päättäväisenä, "minä matkustan heti;

olen vallan unhoittanut, että olen siihen pakoitettu. Minä kyllä lupasin
Aleksander Dmitrijevitshille viipyä täällä vielä pari päivää, mutta sitä
en kuitenkaan nyt voi."
Hän katseli minua hämmästyneenä.
"Mutta kaikin mokomin, se ei käy päinsä. Mitä Aleksandnr

Dmitrijevitsh ajattelisi. Jääkää, minä pyydän."
Hän kävi levottomaksi.
"Ei, minun täytyy lähteä. Minun täytyy pyytää teitä heti käskemään
valjastamaan hevoset vaunujen eteen", toistin minä vakavasti.
"Mikä teidän on?" kysyi hän mielitellen ja tarkoittavaisesti,

päästyään hämmästyksestään.
Hän nousi sohvasta, lähestyi minua, tuli viereeni ja tarjosi minulle

kätensä. Hänen silmänsä tummenivat, ja hän veti silmäluomensa
hiukan yhteen.
Lastenkamarista kaikui korvissamme Tanjan heleä ääni.
"Ei, sehän ei käy päinsä", sanoin minä hänelle, tarttuen hänen

käteensä ja puristaen sitä, "se ei saa tapahtua, se ei saa tapahtua!"
Huolimatta vastustuksestani halusin tuona hetkenä sulkea hänet

syliini; hän tunsi laitani ja kuiskasi:
"Rakkahin ystäväni, se saa tapahtua, se saa…"
Hän laski olkapäilleni kätensä, joka hänellä oli vapaana, ja lähenti

kasvonsa puoleksi avonaisine huulineen minun kasvoihini. Jotkut
pitkät, pehmeät hiukset, jotka peittivät hänen otsaansa, koskettivat
silmiäni.
"Illemmalla", kuiskasi hän, yhdellä hyppäyksellä, kuin kissa,

vetäytyen luotani.

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The elements of relativity First Edition

Relativity is one of the triumphs of twentieth-century physics, but physics cur-

• Spacetime diagrams are introduced very early, in the context of Galilean

In summary, I believe this book enables students with no physics background

Guide to the Reader xvii

1 A First Look at Relativity 1

2 Acceleration and Force 13

4 Reasoning with Frames and Spacetime Diagrams 29

4.3 Coordinate grids of moving frames 33

5 The Speed of Light 43

7 Time Dilation and Length Contraction 74

8 Special Relativity: Putting it All Together 94

9 Doppler Effect and Velocity Addition Law 105

10 The Twin Paradox 117

11 Spacetime Geometry 132

12 Energy and Momentum 147

13 The Equivalence Principle 166

14 Gravity Reframed 180

16 Newtonian Gravity 201

18 General Relativity and the Schwarzschild Metric 237

19 Beyond the Schwarzschild Metric 263

20 Black Holes 283

1.1 Coordinates and displacement

The Elements of Relativity. David M. Wittman, Oxford University Press (2018).

Check your understanding. In some countries the first floor of a building is

a visual representation of velocity as well as position and displacement; with t

Check your understanding. What is the velocity of a rocket that moves 10 km

1.3 Galilean velocity addition law

This example demonstrates that the meaning of a velocity depends on the

of science. Relativity is a wonderful arena for hypothetico-deductive reasoning

Check your understanding. Aboard a train moving eastward at 90 kph, a bicyclist

1.4 Velocity is an arrow

with no associated direction, such as two cups of flour, is called a scalar

Check your understanding. Consider a one-dimensional motion. (a) Can an object

1.5 Symmetry and the principle of relativity

of experimental evidence supporting the principle of relativity—the idea that

• Coordinate independence: because the physical result in any situation

CHECK YOUR UNDERSTANDING: EXPLANATIONS

Between snapshots, Bob moved 2 m, then 3 m, and finally 4 m. If the snapshots

The Elements of Relativity. David M. Wittman, Oxford University Press (2018).

always measure Bob’s acceleration to be 1 m/s2 . This is remarkable, because these

2.2 Acceleration, force, and mass

2.3 Accelerating frames and fictitious forces

2.4 Inertial frames

Box 2.1 Newton’s third law

is immeasurably small because m is now the enormous mass of the Earth.

• If an object is accelerating, observers in all constant-velocity frames agree

CHECK YOUR UNDERSTANDING: EXPLANATIONS

The Elements of Relativity. David M. Wittman, Oxford University Press (2018).

Check your understanding. A cart carries a spring-loaded mechanism that shoots

3.2 Projectile motion

3.3 Principle of relativity

forces invented by physicists merely to explain violations of relativity? Real forces

• It is useful to think of motion in terms of perpendicular components. These

CHECK YOUR UNDERSTANDING: EXPLANATIONS

Nyt minä tapasin Aleksander Dmitrijevitshin, sittenkuin me emme

Kaksi päivää kohtauksemme jälkeen olimme jo hänen

Minä hurmaannuin heti maan hiljaisuudesta, josta en ollut saanut

Kun me ajoimme pihalle ja astuimme yksikerroksiseen